Outcast crossover: Ranma and Love Hina
by Benji Himura
Summary: Another crossover from my Ranma story. What would happen if people started to see the cursed ones as a threat? Abomination and hate, is that what is really felt towards everyone unlucky enough to get cursed? Who are the monsters and the secret can be kept
1. Hunted

Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic. This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Love Hina I don't own or any of the characters of those shows. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed: Benji Himura.

This story begins in the Ranmaverse somewhere in the middle of the events of the chapter thirteen, actually between the release of Hinako and the events of the Gamble King events.

This is a crossover so both stories casts or at least part of them will interact and there will be changes on both stories and on the plotline of Outcast Ranma. For anyone following the main story this scenario doesn't follow the same 'timeline' from the main story, it works on the line that timeline show on the story is the original one.

"Text" Talked sentences.

'Text' Thoughts.

-Text- Sounds effects.

(Text) Talked sentences in a foreign language as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

**Text**: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

_Text_: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

"_Text"_ Alteration in the voice, not in the tone but the voice itself.

Chapter one: Hunted

Benji sighed while moving to Nerima's shopping district, Kasumi him to do some grocery shopping and he wouldn't or could refuse her request. He believed in being healthy and confronting Kasumi made Benji sure that his health would suffer.

Benji wasn't tired or bored, well he was a bit bored, but it wasn't that the reason that he sighed, the shopping district was quiet, far too quiet and deserted for that time of the day. His newly enhanced senses could pick all the scents in the air.

Sweat, spices, garbage, rotten vegetables, meat and blood from the butcher's shop, fish from the fish shop, far too many scents but he could identify most of them, he could hear the people inside the buildings, what was very odd considering that most shops are outside.

Then a familiar scent tickles his nose, gun oil and gunpowder, it was almost the same scent that came from his Enfield, but it was different, he could detect subtle differences on that scent indicating different brands.

Sounds of boots, hard soled combat boots resounded on the alleys and roofs. "Kill the abomination!" A deep male voice shouted; the unmistakable sound of weapons being cocked fills the air, at least for Benji.

Then it came the chaos, Benji ran from the middle of the street towards a building knowing that staying by one side of the street he would have less shooters aiming on him. Bullets destroy the ground where he was staying and follows his movements as he run to avoid them.

Doors burst open and Benji could see several residents of Nerima armed with knives and other household items converted into weapons. Benji growled and leaps over them, with a dark satisfaction Benji hears them screaming as the bullets from the shooters hit them. Benji were counting on that, he wouldn't kill civilians but would make sure that they died.

Entering in an alley Benji grinned in seeing a group of armed men, all them carrying MP5 and dressed in BDUs. Releasing his claws Benji kills them in few instants, seizing the weapons and ammo from them before entering in the sewers, he had no idea of what was going on but the tags of the fallen men as well the weapons would give him few answers.

Ranma leaped from roof from roof, he had overheard in the Nekohanten about the ambush, Benji were considered dangerous and a monster after the battle in the school, that added to his reputation of have killed an student in the past made everyone decide on getting rid of him.

Ranma saw the chaos in the shopping district, fallen people on the street and the cries of the wounded, several man in battle uniforms moving around like ants trying to organize the chaos, he knew that Benji weren't there, if he was there would be corpses and not living people there.

Ranma leaves to the dojo, the most likely place that Benji would go. 'What is going on?' Ranma asked while bouncing on a building. 'Why this is happening now?' Ranma cries in pain when something impacts on his side, it wasn't as powerful as the hits that he took in the past but the massive amount of electricity running on his body made sure that Ranma couldn't do anything other than fall on the ground.

Gasping in pain Ranma looks around with blurry eyes. "We got the second abomination." An unknown man said to a radio. "Waiting for instructions." "Sedate and restrain." An unknown feminine voice replied. "We will study it, locate the other abomination."

"And the ones that came from the continent?" The male asked. "They fled, if they aren't located in three hours we have to assume that they returned to the continent, it is out from our reach." The female answered. "I want that wolf abomination; that mutation can provide us with powerful soldiers."

Ranma knew that they were speaking about Benji, the amazons and him; he would hurt them badly, as soon he could get his members to obey his commands. The man puts the radio on his vest and pulls a dart gun. "No offence kid but I am just obeying orders." The man said leveling the gun. "Don't take this personally."

"Take this very personally." A very familiar male voice said before a gunshot echoes on the air. The soldier falls in pain holding his bleeding ass. "So you will tell me what is going on or I will have to drag you to my lair and question you?" Benji asked with a wicked grin on his lips. "And your coworkers are disable."

Ranma looked around and saw that it was truth, ten men where fallen on the ground over pools of blood, their weapons and ammo missing from them. "So what you want?" Benji asked. "If you talk you can call an ambulance and have a chance of living. A shot up your ass tearing your intestines is pretty nasty but you will have a chance of living."

"Forget it." The man said reaching for his sidearm. Benji shrugged and beheads the guy with a knife. Releasing Ranma as well getting the weapons from that man Benji leaves the area shouldering Ranma and taking him to the sewers.

"Less chance of being spotted down here." Benji said as he runs on the underground tunnel. "What is going on?" Ranma asked still unable to move. "I have no idea, but I was ambushed on the shopping district, something is wrong and I think that some one wants to use us as lab rats." Benji answered. "Wanting or not our curses attract attention and there would be people willing to find a way to use it as way to gain profit."

"What we do?" Ranma asked worried about themselves and his family. "We go to Nodoka's place and check on her, there we get our things and hide in someplace quiet." Benji answered. "But I am sure that she is fine, Nodoka isn't cursed neither are the Tendo family." Ranma nodded agreeing.

In few minutes Benji and Ranma are in the Himura house, they gather their belongings and looks for Nodoka. "It is just me or you are also getting a bad feeling?" Ranma asked to Benji. "I am getting it too." Benji replied holding two Beretta pistols in his hands. "This place is too quiet."

Ranma and Benji leave the house and moves to the Tendo dojo; before they enter they decide to check if it is safe. "They escaped." A white haired woman wearing a lab coat said looking at Kasumi and Nabiki who are having tea calmly with Nodoka between them. "It was very unfortunate but the wolf abomination escaped from the ambush and then tracked the transsexual one. The body count is just bellow the one hundred mark."

"I wasn't counting on this." Nodoka commented biting her right thumbnail. "Sure I expected some resistance from him but not this." "We have no idea of what kind of training the so called friend of the old Chinese ghoul gave to the wolf." Nabiki said in a plain tone, just then Benji as well Ranma noticed that Nabiki was wearing some kind of blindfold over her eyes, her hair covering the sides and back giving the illusion that it was just there.

"He also single handed mauled the flying abomination." Kasumi added. "But your calculations were way off sister. You were supposed to provide us with detailed information about him since you were bedding him. You even failed in getting a good sample from him; it is that hard to get pregnant?"

Nabiki ignores the barbs. "He kept some distance and hasn't told me everything about him." Nabiki replied. "He told me about his family but they don't exist, he is fully sticking to the old ghoul's story, there isn't an official record of Benji Himura, at least that one existing in Brazil. Besides he mostly used me for sex and some emotional closure, he never got too close."

Kasumi snorted at Nabiki's reply. "Stop that." Nodoka snapped. "That isn't important, we failed in getting a good sample from him or capturing him, now our priority is to capture them, later we extract as much sperm as we need and create the samples in the laboratory."

"There is still the question if the so called curse mutation is hereditary." The white haired woman commented. "If it is then we could breed an army of werewolves, but without the regenerative abilities of the real thing it might be a project fated to failure." "The strength and the shape-shifting are more than enough reasons to create a troop of them." Nodoka said seriously. "If the problem is the healing we can make samples with the transsexual one, he supposedly has a very good healing time and regenerative abilities, besides the ability to change sexes would prove profitable not only as spies but using as a source of relief for the troopers."

"True that soldiers in battle will willingly fuck anything that they can." The unknown woman commented. "But I am unsure if they would willingly do it with the abominations, we are talking about seeing them as male monsters slaughtering the enemy during the day and female fuck slaves in the night, I don't think that they would do it."

"But we can't discover if we don't capture them." Nodoka deadpanned. Benji looks at Ranma, and Ranma nodded at Benji with not much of a heavy heart Benji pulls a pair grenades from his pocket, he stole those from soldiers earlier, after checking if they are the fragmentation ones Benji pulls the pins count to three and throw them inside the house.

They can hear the screams as they jump away from there instants before the grenades exploded inside the house. Running away from there the duo only slows down when leaving Nerima. "What we do now Benji?" Ranma asked to the taller man. "We leave this place for good." Benji answered. "Isn't like we have all that many reasons to stay anyway. But if you feel uncomfortable with me because what I did we can part ways." Ranma shook his head. "I don't feel uncomfortable at all." He replied. "You did what you…!"

Ranma spits on the wet sidewalk, a car ran over a puddle of water splashing both of them and triggering their curses. Benji glared at the speeding car, now as a wolf standing besides a dripping wet female Ranma. Benji shakes the water from his fur spraying Ranma and the surroundings with it.

"Gee thanks." Ranma muttered looking down at the wolf. "Let's get out of here before someone else wet us again." Benji replied, he trained to be able to speak with his normal voice as wolf. Ranma nodded and they walk away. "So where to now?" Ranma asked.

"Juuban." Benji answered. "We still have the credit cards that Nodoka gave us, we take as much money as we can from them, then we buy tickets to France." "Why France?" Ranma asked curious. "Fake lead." Benji answered. "They will look for us there, so we can settle in laying low in some other place."

Ranma nodded understanding. "After we get rid of our cell phones we give the tickets away to someone else, I am sure that they would take the chance of visiting Europe." Benji continued. "We get rid of our documents and work to get some new identities. I was taught how to make them so I can forge real ones later."

Ranma chuckled softly. "You know Benji if I was with anyone else I think that I would be located and captured pretty soon." Ranma laughed. "I am happy that I am with you, at least with you I know that you wouldn't trade me to save your life." Benji smiled, at least tried to.

"Thanks for the trust." Benji replied. "But let's focus in not calling much attention; we also need to change our names." Ranma sighed in mock annoyance and playfully said. "Just when I was getting used to be called Himura. So what you suggest?"

"For you Ranko." Benji answered with a canine grin. "That is a girl's name." Ranma protested. "As far as I know you don't have a penis right now." Benji pointed out teasingly. "Tachibana Ranko-chan."

Ranma let out an exasperate groan, but knew that he was right, it would be much easier to hide as a girl specially since everyone knows how much he hates his cursed form. Ranma grinned. "And that means that you are my nice pet doggie." Ranma cooed sweetly.

End of the chapter one:

Author explanation corner:

One again inspiration struck me with her bat, yes I have the lump to prove it. Originally this cross idea is old but it only started to gain form recently, actually this weekend. As everyone noticed this differs from the other crossover, I won't tell why Nodoka started to hunt down everyone who has a Jusenkyo curse, that is a spoiler, later when the time is right I will reveal the reasons. The fate of the others members of the cast will be exposed gradually during the story.

And don't worry I am also working in my main Ranma fic as well the first crossover, but they are both moving on slug pace, sometime soon I will update one of them, they aren't forgotten.


	2. Moving in

Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic. This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Love Hina I don't own or any of the characters of those shows. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed: Benji Himura.

This story begins in the Ranmaverse somewhere in the middle of the events of the chapter thirteen, actually between the release of Hinako and the events of the Gamble King events.

In the Love Hina timeline in the manga it stars after the chapter twenty six but before the chapter twenty seven.

This is a crossover so both stories casts or at least part of them will interact and there will be changes on both stories and on the plotline of Outcast Ranma. For anyone following the main story this scenario doesn't follow the same 'timeline' from the main story, it works on the line that timeline show on the story is the original one.

"Text" Talked sentences.

'Text' Thoughts.

-Text- Sounds effects.

(Text) Talked sentences in a foreign language as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

**Text**: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

_Text_: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

"_Text"_ Alteration in the voice, not in the tone but the voice itself.

Chapter two: Moving in

Ranko throws herself on the bed of their hotel room, it was a bit embarrassing to get a room in a love hotel but it was the best way to get a place to bath, sleep and think without having to worry about registration, after all those hotels are made with privacy in mind. Benji was in the bathroom taking a shower; he was dirty with blood and sweat.

They moved from Nerima to Juuban and from Juuban to Shibuya since in Shibuya they would mingle in the crowd, and as Benji said once he was back on his original form no one paid them any attention, entering in the hotel was not only easy but simple, Benji slipped the needed amount of money in the selection machine and got a room for them for the entire night.

No one thought much about them as far they cared it was just another young couple wanting privacy to have sex in the hotel, the lobby was empty and no one gave them a second look when they entered in the hotel. Ranko had to admit that she would never think on staying in a love hotel.

Flipping channels on the TV she blushes madly at the large amount of porn available on there, finally finding something not sexual she watched the news. "This afternoon there was two gas explosions in the Nerima district. The total of victims edge under one hundred, there wasn't survivors in both locations." Ranko hears in silence as the female newscaster continues to spout what Ranko knew that was a lie.

"God bless media control." Benji muttered leaving the bathroom wrapped in a towel while using a second one to dry his hair. "This makes easier to us." "How?" Ranko asked looking at him. "It means that they need secrecy to act and what they did was illicit." Benji answered. "They covered up as gas explosions and accidents so there isn't a public and active search for us."

"I don't fully understand but it is good right?" Ranko replied. "Yes." Benji answered. "Now go take a bath and relax a little and remember to change back to your female form afterwards." Ranko nodded and enters on the bathroom.

Benji starts checking on the weapons that he stole. Shiaki taught him about that too, her mystical training nearly killed him but he gained centuries worth of training and knowledge in exchange even thought his body isn't ready for most of the techniques that he learned.

He doesn't find any kind of tracking devices or problems on the weapons; he keeps all the pistols, select four of the twenty sub-machineguns, and takes all the magazines from them. Benji wonders if he could sell the other sixteen MP5s more money wouldn't hurt, but it would be too risky, he decides to tie them in a sheet and store on his hidden weapons space, he might need them later.

"That was good." Ranko commented leaving the bathroom wearing a bathrobe. "Benji what we do now?" Ranko asked sitting in the bed too. "Changing our appearances wouldn't hurt." Benji commented, he wasn't happy about it but he would cut his hair and maybe even dye it. "Changing your hair style and maybe dye your hair. Too bad that we can't make it longer."

"Actually." Ranko started taking out her hair band and loosing her hair. "Help me with this; shoot me with hot water and then cold water as fast as you can." Benji nodded and follows Ranko to the bathroom, he had no idea of what was going on but he would help.

Benji stared at Ranko, her hair was now reaching the floor of so long and she was a male for less than one second.

"In the Jusenkyo area I ate something that made my hair grow this wild." Ranko explained while Benji cut her hair to at least a more normal length. "In my female form nothing happens but in my male form it grows like that, my hair band is the only thing that keeps it in control."

Benji nodded understanding. "Well I am not a stylist or a woman so it isn't all that great." Benji commented looking at Ranko's hair, he cut it to Ranko's calf height in a simple V style. "Tomorrow we go to a stylist to cut and dye it." Ranko nodded washing her hair to wash away the cut hairs.

"You also need to change your clothing style." Benji said from the door. "No more only Chinese outfits, at least no longer all the time. Use other clothes, that also means women clothes. But for a while let's settle with jeans and t-shirts." Ranko nodded while drying her hair.

Back in the bedroom Ranko changes to her usual sleeping outfit. "What else can we do?" Ranko asked. "At the moment just this will do it, we leave the area tomorrow in the afternoon; in the morning we shop for new clothes and other items." Benji answered. "Now you get some sleep."

"And you?" Ranko asked. "I will go get us some new documents." Benji answered. "I don't really want to stay alone right now." Ranko said looking at him. Benji nodded and remained in the bed, the documents could wait.

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Benji didn't minded staying on his wolf form, he could live with the fact that in the most technical sense he was naked, what was bothering him was the collar, the damned thing clung on his neck and was itchy, forcing him to often sit and scratch it.

The collar was part of the disguise and so was the leash that was attached to it and held by Ranko, they both know that seeing a huge wolf like dog unleashed would cause panic so Ranko held the leash but didn't tug on it or acted as she would with a dog, she knows very well that she doesn't have to.

Ranko's hair was now painted orange, it was an unusual color but called so much attention that was perfect for their plan, Nabiki couldn't even think that they would dye Ranma's hair with such bright color, she is also wearing loose slacks, sneakers, a white t-shirt and a denim jacket, her backpack was small since most of their things are stored in the hidden space.

The street wasn't crowded but wasn't empty either, children pointed at Benji since the big dog as they called it was indeed big. Ranko just chuckled at them. "Want to take a break?" she asked to Benji, they were walking for a while and the day was hot even thought it was cloudy. Benji nodded lightly knowing better than answering vocally.

A short while later they are in a park under the shade of a tree, Ranko is eating one hamburger; Benji is doing the same but the hamburger is over the wrap and he is eating on his wolf form. "We should find a place to stay." Ranko commented looking at the gray sky. "It will soon start to rain."

Benji swallows a mouthful of food. "Where exactly we are anyway?" he asked before taking another bite of his pile of hamburgers. "Kanagawa." Ranko answered. "Somewhere near Hinata." Benji choked on his food, not a pretty thing for a wolf. "Benji what is wrong?!" Ranko asked patting his back as he coughs.

Benji forcefully swallows. "Please tell me that I haven't heard you say Hinata." Benji replied with a hoarse voice. "But I did say Hinata." Ranko said confused while Benji drinks from his large glass of soda. "Have you ever heard about Shinmei-ryu sword style?" Benji asked with his voice back to normal.

"It is a famous sword style from Kyoto." Ranko answered. "The panda once tried to steal from them only to be severely punished by the attempt." Benji sighed, that was enough for him to know that there is a Hinata-sou and a Motoko Aoyama living there. 'I wonder if it would be safer staying Nerima.' Benji thought. 'In the other hand the sheer power of the girls there might come handy in trouble.'

Ranko remained in silence for a while. "I think that I know a place that we can stay." Benji said after thinking not so carefully on the idea. "But it might be as chaotic as Nerima." "I guess that is worth the shot." Ranko replied taking a bite of her hamburger. "I know you enough to know that you have something in mind to suggest a place that has some kind of problems."

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Benji wasn't expecting a warm welcome; he wasn't even expecting the deluge that stared while he and Ranko moved to the area of the pension. Ranko removed Benji's collar and both of them ran in the rain, they were wet but neither of them wanted to stay under the rain for any longer than the needed.

"Over there!" Benji shouted seeing the steps that lead to the Hinata-sou, he doesn't know why they can't find a single cover to hide, Ranko purposely avoided cafes and other stores since Benji wouldn't be able to enter on them. "Ah man…" Ranko said seeing the long stairway, the thing looked like currents because the rainwater and was long as a waterfall.

They continue to run ignoring the water on their feet. "This damn thing has an end?!" Ranko asked annoyed, even her panties were soaked. "It should have!" Benji replied, he was worse than Ranko since he is naked and his fur is soaked, any cold and discomfort that Ranko feels about the rain is worse for Benji.

They finally arrives the end and run to the cover of the entrance of the pension. Benji vigorously shakes the water from his fur making Ranko squeal and cry as the cold drops hit her. "Stop doing that!" Ranko shouted to Benji. "You have no idea of how bad is the feeling of wet fur." Benji replied calmly, at least he was less wet.

Ranko glared at him not really annoyed, she was wet so there wasn't any harm. Ranko rings the bell of the pension. "Hey there is anyone here?" Ranko called loudly but not shouting. "Why you are bothering?" Kitsune drunk as a skunk asked opening the door. Benji frowned at the scent of alcohol coming from the brown haired girl.

"I am looking for a place to stay." Ranko answered. "This place is a pension right?" "Keitaro you have work!" Kitsune shouted turning to the inside the pension. Ranko looks down at Benji and the wolf replied with a shrug. "Anything wrong Kitsune?" Keitaro asked walking to the entry. "I thought that I heard the bell."

"A girl wants to rent a room or just shelter from the rain." Kitsune replied. "Don't do anything that I wouldn't do." 'As if I would get drunk and flirt with someone as you.' Keitaro flatly said to himself as Kitsune leaves the entrance. "So can we get in or we should stay out here and freeze our asses in this cold rain and wind?" Ranko asked getting annoyed. "Sorry!" Keitaro exclaimed. "Please come in."

Ranko entered followed by Benji. "Excuse me but what is that?" Keitaro asked pointing to the huge black wolf. "This is Benji." Ranko answered. "My pet, I think that is unfair leave him outside."

"Well as long he doesn't break anything he can stay, it isn't like we have a no pet policy." Keitaro commented. "Please wait in the lobby; I will fetch a dry towel for you." Ranko nodded and moves to the mentioned area. Benji calmly sits down and Ranko kneels next to him.

"I hope that you know what you are doing." Ranko whispered on his ear while ruffling the fur of his neck as if she was petting him. 'So do I.' Benji replied on his mind. "Just remember we can't expose our male forms, well our uncursed forms here." Benji whispered back.

Ranko nodded and stands up. "That is a big dog!" Shinobu exclaimed entering on the lobby. "He is a wolf." Ranko corrected. "But yes he is quite big even for a wolf." "What is his name?" Shinobu asked excited while examining Benji. "Benji." Ranko answered. "Poor thing he must be cold." Shinobu said feeling his wet fur.

"I brought the towels." Keitaro said when returning. "Ah… miss…?" "Tachibana Ranko." Ranko clarified. "Thanks for the towel." She takes the towels and starts drying herself the best that she can. "You want to rent a room or you just want some shelter from the rain?" Keitaro asked as serious and business like as he can.

"Rent a room." Ranko said drying her waist long orange hair. "Because certain family issues I decided not taking sides and decided to move out and live by myself." "I see." Keitaro replied not wanting to pry, it was a fake story that Benji made, actually it was a line that Benji made Ranko say when questioned, it would give the idea that Ranko moved out because her parents divorced. "The rent is pretty cheap, ten thousand yens per month."

Ranko pulls her wallet and hands to Keitaro three damp ten thousand yens bills. "That is for the first three months starting today." Ranko answered pocketing her wallet once again. "You are very down to the point." Keitaro commented taking the soggy money. "I will get a contract ready, Shinobu mind in showing her the bath? I believe that you would like to warm up."

"That would be pleasant." Ranko answered. "What about my room?" "I believe that the 210 will be the best, it isn't connected to other occupied rooms so it will be quiet." Keitaro answered with a smile. 'Having a friendly girl might save me from problems in the long run so I should go out of my way to be nice to her and avoid accidents with her.' He added to himself.

"Sounds good for me." Ranko replied. "So Shinobu-chan, right? Where is the bath?" "This way please." Shinobu said with a smile guiding Ranko to the bath. "Shinobu-chan, because some personal reasons do you mind in making sure that no one enters in the bath after I get in?" Ranko asked seriously. "I have some issues with my body and I don't like others to see me naked."

"I understand Ranko-san." Shinobu replied with a nod. "I will stay outside and explain to everyone, you just warm up with a nice shower." "Thank you." Ranko said with a smile. Shinobu checks and finds the bathing area empty; Ranko enters and locks the door leading to the changing area.

She peels her wet cloth away and throws in the dryer, Benji sits on the floor and changes to his human, the hidden clothes technique worked and he is kneeled on the floor wet, the drops of water falling on the floor. "You go and take a bath, I am not feeling cold so I will just dry up and change back." Benji mouthed to Ranko.

She nodded and moves to the bathing area, Benji finds a towel and dries himself thoroughly, pleased with his state Benji sighed before changing to his wolf form, he wonders if he would any day get used to the weird numbness and nearly painful feelings of changing forms.

Now dry his fur shines under the lamp, Benji moves to the door and lies next to it waiting for Ranko to end her bath, staying by the door it would prevent anyone from entering and if anyone unlocked the door it would cause the person to trip on him, giving him plenty of chances to warn Ranko.

Twenty minutes and one outfit later Ranko and Benji are introduced to everyone, first Keitaro introduced the girls, and Benji already knew who was who. "And girls this is Tachibana Ranko-san, she moved in today." Keitaro said to the previous inhabitants of the pension.

"Nice to meet you." Ranko said with a smile, she recalled Benji's advices about being polite and thinking before talking. "My name is Ranko and this is Benji, he looks big and mean but he is a really nice boy, as long you don't provoke him he won't bite. He is also well trained so don't about broken things and other stuff."

"He is much better than a turtle." Motoko commented looking at Benji's black fur. "Is he docile?" "Very, but he has a temper too as long he isn't annoyed, poked, hit, hurt or force feed him he wouldn't bite or hurt anyone." Ranko answered patting Benji's head. "He is a trained attack dog; he is smart so he knows when to attack and when not to attack and which amount of force use in a determinate situation."

"Impressive." Motoko said kneeling in front of Benji and petting his furry head. "A cousin of mine had one too, saved her life several times. But Benji is wolf related right?" "He is a wolf." Ranko answered with a smile. "But he is very docile you can hardly tell that he is a wolf by his actions."

"His looks are more than enough for that." Kitsune pointed out. "He is huge." "I kind of like him." Motoko commented savoring the feel of Benji's silky fur on her hand. "Dogs are loyal, kind and honorable, unlike a certain someone." Keitaro cringes at the not so subtle barb.

"Well as long he doesn't damage things or dirt the whole place I don't mind." Naru said looking at Benji. "But why he isn't with a collar or even a leash?" "The collar hurts and bothers him." Ranko answered recalling how it was earlier. "So unless I really need to put it on him I leave him without it."

"He looks better with out it." Shinobu commented also petting Benji, he had to admit that being pet was good, it has to be something with his wolf form. "What he eats?" "Virtually the same that we do." Ranko answered. "He doesn't like dog food and only eat it when there isn't anything else, so if you want to feed him give him human food. Of course there are things that he doesn't like but you learn with time."

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Ranko looked at the empty room, was considerably large, more than her old room and that room was sizable. "Well some furniture, posters, and other knick-knacks will make this place homey." She commented standing on the middle of the room. "This place is quite good considering the cheap rent."

Still in his wolf form Benji turns on a MP3 player, in that way it would disguise his voice as well give excuses if someone heard him. "You heard the girls earlier Ranko." Benji; said it was part of Ranma's new training to get used to being called Ranko so Benji was calling her like that. "This place is wild, Naru and Motoko as well Kaolla hit Keitaro in the same way that Akane used to hit you."

"I sympathize with the poor bastard." Ranko replied sitting down on the floor, it was oddly odd to chat with Benji while he was a wolf but she was getting used to it. "But is something that I can't help all that much, well I guess that I can now that I am here."

Benji smiled, Ranko was finally learning to be more selfless and considerate. "But being stuck in this girl form is really bugging me, this body is uncomfortable, don't even get me started in using the bathroom." Ranko complained. "At least you can still use a bathroom." Benji said in a flat tone. "All that you have to do is walk in a bathroom and use it, I have to find an alley to change or sneak in the bathroom."

Ranko smiled sympathetically, sure she was getting bad but Benji was getting worse, he was naked and inhuman while she kept a human form, she could normally interact with people and objects, he couldn't. "But everyone seems to be nice." Ranko commented. "This could really be a good place."

"As long they don't learn the truth." Benji said seriously. "Listen Ranma we need to avoid seeing them naked, in lingerie, half-naked, or in any other situation that might lead them to think that we are taking advantage of our curses. Sooner or later the truth will come out and it will be better for us if they remember that we never used our curses to see them with less than acceptable amounts of clothing."

"I can agree with that." Ranko replied with a nod, she still remembers very well of Ryoga using his curse to sleep with Akane and how he snuggled against her breasts, yes Ranko wouldn't ever use her curse like that. "But what about you? I mean Motoko and Shinobu seemed to really like you, let's think on this scenario, what if you were in their room for any reason, let's say you were playing with Shinobu or something like that and she started to change her clothes? I mean people normally don't care in stripping in front of pets. And what about confidences?"

"In the changing scenario I would leave or try leaving the room." Benji answered. "In the confidence scenario I would try finding a way of not hearing or preventing them from saying it. And adding a new thing, I am really trying to find ways of not licking anyone."

Ranko nodded blushing fiercely, Benji had a strong point on that, people knows how dogs are normally affectionate and lick people, but if he did that Benji might be accused of taking advantage of his curse when it is finally exposed.

"When I think that things aren't all that hard for you, you come and drop something new." Ranko commented lying on her back. "I guess that you were right in the end I am lucky in being cursed with a human curse. I can't imagine how hard it is for you."

"You kind of get used." Benji replied lying down. "I mean I no longer have the same morals and standards than normal people, part of the whole adaptation issue thing. Being naked or dressed isn't much of a issue since wolves doesn't think of nudity as something embarrassing, not using the bathroom and reliving in anywhere when I feel like going isn't a problem either, of course that I still have some sense or modesty and embarrassment. Being naked in the middle of the street and in public okay; pissing in public not okay."

Ranko chuckled at his words. "I wonder what you think about rutting." She commented casually. "It is okay doing in public." Benji replied with a grin. "I wonder if that is the wolf side or the perverted Japanese side speaking." Ranko laughed at his answer, she wasn't sure either but from what she saw in the internet Japanese are indeed fairly perverted under the façade of politeness and everything else.

Benji yawned and stretched. "Anyway leaving rutting and perversions aside I will take a nap." Benji commented lying back down. "Wake me by dinnertime." "Sure." Ranko replied casually.

In few minutes Benji is indeed sleeping, Ranko smiled and moves at his direction and latched on his side, resting her head against his thick and furry neck Ranko adjusts herself on his side holding Benji's warm and furry body, the soft fur, the warmth of his body and his heartbeat making the now orange haired girl fall in sleep quickly and contently as a child.

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Haruka takes a drag of her cigarette. "So a new tenant." She commented checking on the contract that Ranko signed. "Why you accepted it when she left blank everything related to her family and home?"

"Well her parents' divorce wasn't easy." Keitaro answered before sipping some tea. "Instead of giving them ammo to use against the other by moving with one of them or living in shared custody Tachibana-san decided to live by herself; she is getting an allowed to cover living expenses."

"Still I don't like of this." Haruka said lightly patting on the contract with the back of her left hand. "No parents' name, no former address, no emergency contact phone number and no one to contact on an emergency. What if she is a runaway?"

"Then she would have a good reason to run away from home." Keitaro answered while Haruka exhaled the smoke. "She said that she has a older brother that lives nearby and would visit every now and then, she said that she haven't given us the address because her parents are moving away and that she doesn't want them to try buying her or visiting her to pamper her to use against the other, so she isn't telling them where she is staying."

"She hasn't even placed her brother's name on the contract, how reliable he would be if she can't even put his phone number for contact in an emergency?" Haruka asked seriously. "And let's just put aside the whole fighting parents issue, I will pretend to swallow the story, focusing on this brother of her, why she hasn't moved with him?"

"I asked the same." Keitaro answered. "He works making delivers between cities and doesn't have a place of his own; he lives in one place for one week or two, then in other in the next one depending of the city that he is in."

Haruka crushes her cigarette on the ashtray. "As I said unreliable." Haruka deadpanned. "What is his name anyway?" She asked in hopes of learning more about him and Ranko. "Benji." Keitaro answered. "Tachibana Benji, Ranko-san said that named her dog after her brother."

Haruka sighed while pulling another cigarette from her pack. "I will see if I can find something about them." Haruka commented lighting her cigarette. "I don't trust on people with shady pasts."

"But we don't know much about Kaolla either." Keitaro pointed out. "We don't know from where she came, who her family is or even her home address." Haruka grunted at Keitaro's words, she knew that he was right, and if she didn't cared about Kaolla than it wouldn't be fair for probing on Ranko's past.

"Fine." Haruka muttered slapping the contract on the table. "While I won't to a background search on this Tachibana Ranko girl I will be keeping an eye on her." Haruka takes another drag of her cigarette, she was suspicious of that newcomer, something deep on her gut told her that the girl was more than just a girl.

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Motoko knocked on the door of the room 210, it was dinnertime and since Ranko haven't show up she decided to call on the new girl. "Ranko-san?" Motoko called. "Ranko-san it is time for dinner."

Not getting a reply Motoko called and knocked a couple more times before opening the door. "Pardon me for the intrusion." She said while opening the door, she couldn't help on smiling at the scene in front of her. Ranko was snuggled against Benji's large body, both of them sleeping soundly, the fiery hair of the girl contrasting with the dark fur of the wolf.

"Ranko-san." Motoko called once again. "…Suwati…?" Ranko mumbled on her sleep. "Dinner is served are you coming?" Motoko said casually. "Mmmmnnnn…froood…" Ranko murmured, however she makes a mistake and munches at Benji's fur. That makes the wolf not only cry in pain but jump away from the offender.

Motoko startled by the incident and falls over her butt as Benji snarled angrily looking around the room with his fur bristled, she could see all the signs that Benji was very aggressive on that moment, his shiny teeth and his lips pulled back exposing them only added to the image.

Benji finally discovers the source of the pain when seeing a not so small amount of black fur on Ranko's mouth, he snorted and relaxed, then he realized that Motoko was in the room. Benji moves to Ranko and hits the sleeping girl with his right front paw few times before she wakes up.

Motoko sighed in relief now that Benji calmed. "Yuck!" Ranko spits the fur from her mouth, but there was also some on her tongue and bellow it. "What happened Benji?" "Actually you bit him." Motoko answered. "I am sorry that I entered but I called out for dinner but you didn't answer."

"It is okay." Ranko replied trying to take the hair from her tongue. "We will be going as soon I finish taking the hairs from my mouth." "We will be waiting." Motoko said. "Once again I apologize for the intrusion." Motoko stands up, bows and leaves the room closing the door behind her. "Please change and get the ones under my tongue." Ranko pleaded to Benji as soon Motoko's footsteps aren't audible. "They keep escaping me."

Benji sighed swiftly changing to his human form, fully dressed but sited on the floor. "Fine open up and be still." Benji replied mildly annoyed that Ranko bit him. Ranko complied as Benji worked on her.

End of the chapter two:

I want to thank everyone who read, reviewed and placed this story on their favorites. As any writer I hoped to see it getting a good response but I was never expecting to the magnitude of the response that I got. Over three hundred hits on the two days after it was posted. I will try my best to keep this story up to the response.

And now a little bonus scene:

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Somewhere in Tokyo

Nodoka wakes in pain, the worse pain that she ever felt by far surpassing childbirth and Ranma's birth was everything but easy. It takes few moments to her left eye adjust to the light and loose the fog like blur that filled her sight making nearly impossible to recognize anything around her.

She is inside a white room, she can't feel any scents but the heavy layer of bandages covering most of her face is enough reason for that, at least on her pain filled mind, seeing the countless machines surrounding and connected on her. Nodoka understand that she is inside a medical facility.

She is unable to smile but reaches towards the machine that she knows that administrate morphine directly on her IV line, her arm and hand are covered in bandages with large specs of blood covering it. She nearly purred in delight when the machine jets on her system an unknown but clearly large amount of the drug lessening her pain.

With a lucid mind Nodoka finds the nurse calling button and presses it, she doesn't know for how long she was there but was time for her to know what happened after the two grenades that surely Benji threw inside the room exploded in the middle of the conversation with Shiraya.

"It is good to see you awake commander." A male voice said, Nodoka turns her face to the direction of the voice and sees a man on his late thirties wearing a lab coat entering on the room. "……!" Nodoka tried to speak but no sound came from her, she looks at him blazing the doctor with her questions.

"There are two reasons for that." He said understanding what she started to ask. "The first is a tube down your throat that is helping you breathe. And the second is that your throat was severely damaged by a jagged piece of wood, your vocal cords were destroyed. We tried to repair the damage and we believe that we held a degree of success, within three to six months when the damage on your throat is healed you should be able to speak again but your voice will never be the same or will be higher than a whisper."

Nodoka feels enraged at the doctor's words; he connects two more wires on her head and neck. "This is an experimental machine, it should be able to pick up the signals from your nerves and convert them into words." He explained. "Try speaking now." "You are better to have some pretty good news about their capture." A digitalized version of Nodoka's voice comes from the machine and even being emotionless the anger on it was clear.

"I hate to remind you commander but hunting isn't on my job's descriptions, I am a doctor I repair damage in human bodies." He replied seriously. "How long I have been here?" Nodoka asked. "Two weeks." The doctor answered. "You have been unconscious since the attack and were in and out of the surgery room until this Monday, we removed around one kilo of shrapnel, debris and shattered bone from you."

Nodoka remained in silence digesting the information. "What is the situation?" She asked. "You lost all the motor functions of your right arm; with time you are likely to recover around twenty percent of it." He answered in a clinical tone. "The entire right side of your face was destroyed, you arrived here with your face hanging on a piece of skin and muscle, your skull were exposed, not much of a pretty sight and I am a military doctor for my entire career, honestly speaking after the sheer amount of damage that you too I believe that is a miracle that you survived. You lost both kidneys, a sizable portion of your liver, meters of both intestines, your stomach had to be diminished because it tore, and it was a mess cleaning up the acid from your insides."

"Down to the point." Nodoka said dryly. The doctor sighed. "In the most technical and literal sense the machines in this room are keeping you alive." He replied seriously. "Continuous dialysis, evacuation control, pumping your blood, breathing for you, actually the only thing that you can do by yourself is move a little and use your remaining eye. We expect that your condition will improve given time, but it should take at least two years for you to be having a shadow of the life that you had before."

Nodoka remained in silence, her determination of finding Benji and Ranma only grows stronger. "What about the others in the room?" "Shiraya died on the spot." He answered adjusting his glasses. "Her head was split open by some shrapnel, instant death. Kasumi lost both legs, her left arm from above the elbow, right breast, she is deaf of the right ear, her visual acuity fell greatly she is almost blind, her hip fractured in seven different places, the loss of both legs isn't really helping with the blood production, and there is also some spinal damage."

"And Nabiki?" Nodoka asked hiding her feelings about Kasumi's condition. "Of the three of you she is the one who took less damage, since she was far from the blast zone, at least compared to you and Kasumi." The doctor answered. "Some shrapnel tore her eyes, she lost both eyes and her entire sight, her left foot is gone too, she also had some major internal damage, but she lost only her left kidney…" He hesitates a little before continuing.

"Spit it out, I am not in the mood for stalling." Nodoka spat. "She as well you and Kasumi lost your wombs, shrapnel and splinters damage them beyond repair." He said seriously. Nodoka laughed, but stops soon, it hurts too much. "So he got some pretty mean revenge." Nodoka chuckled. "But isn't important, we had some eggs harvested from us in the past."

The doctor looks at Nodoka in silence. "Bring in my second I want to hear a full report of the situation yesterday." Nodoka said. "I also want to know what happened and what you did while I was out." The doctor nodded and leaves. 'Scary woman, I am almost wishing that those grenades had finished the job.'


	3. School day

Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic. This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Love Hina I don't own or any of the characters of those shows. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed: Benji Himura.

This story begins in the Ranmaverse somewhere in the middle of the events of the chapter thirteen, actually between the release of Hinako and the events of the Gamble King events.

In the Love Hina timeline in the manga it stars after the chapter twenty six but before the chapter twenty seven.

This is a crossover so both stories casts or at least part of them will interact and there will be changes on both stories and on the plotline of Outcast Ranma. For anyone following the main story this scenario doesn't follow the same 'timeline' from the main story, it works on the line that timeline show on the story is the original one.

"Text" Talked sentences.

'Text' Thoughts.

-Text- Sounds effects.

(Text) Talked sentences in a foreign language as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

**Text**: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

_Text_: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

"_Text"_ Alteration in the voice, not in the tone but the voice itself.

Chapter three: School day

One week had passed since Benji and Ranko moved to the Hinata-sou, everyone quickly got used to the new additions and Kaolla learned pretty soon that Benji wasn't all that easy going with her games as Tama-chan was, it took some bites and scratches for the girl understand that she couldn't use Benji as a horse or pull on his ears or tail.

No one really complained since Benji never bit that hard, his intention was to inflict pain and not hurt, Keitaro agreed with Benji's actions, actually understood and supported them, other than few Kaolla incidents no one else had problems with Benji. The tenants also respected Ranko's wish for privacy when bathing and made use of a wood plaque to signal when Ranko was bathing, and that also meant that Benji was taking a bath too, which they liked since like that the wolf wouldn't reek.

Ranko glared at Benji, she wasn't happy in going back to school and since Benji was the one who arranged that she was forced to go. "It is important that you go to school not only for our disguise, you also need a good education." Benji said in the previous night when he arrived with a school uniform for Ranko, a girl's uniform.

"Don't worry Ranko-san." Motoko said to the orange haired girl trying to comfort Ranko. "My school is very respectable and there aren't boys there. We have a good kendo club. Your brother was lucky in getting you a transfer there so early in the year."

"I guess." Ranko replied with a dry chuckle. "But I don't really like studying." "Study is important to a warrior." Motoko said in a solemn tone. "A true warrior has a sharp mind and a sharp body knowing when to use his blade and when to use his wits." Benji smiled inwardly. 'Thank you Motoko!' He said to himself.

"Who will be watching Benji while you are in the school?" Shinobu asked petting the wolf. "Benji can take care of himself for few hours." Ranko answered. "As long we leave some food separated for him as well water he won't need much more than that."

"And since Narusegawa and I will be studying we can also keep an eye on him." Keitaro commented. "Until now he doesn't give much of trouble so it should be fine." "Speak for yourself." Naru deadpanned. "I still don't like of that mutt."

"Should I remember you that he is a trained attack dog that knows when he is insulted or provoked?" Ranko asked casually. "But thank you for the offer Keitaro, don't worry if Benji goes for a walk and takes a while outside, he will get back when he gets hungry or bored."

Keitaro nodded understanding while Naru snorted at the reminder of Benji's training. "Ranko-san unless you want to get late you should be getting ready, you still have to speak with the principal." Motoko said in her usual tone. Ranko sighed. "I don't want to make a bad impression in my first day." She muttered moving to her room to put on her uniform.

"So in what class Ranko-san will be staying?" Kitsune asked curiously. "She is one year younger than me, so she is one class bellow me." Motoko answered. "I will try making her arrival the most peaceful as possible." "Aren't you a responsible senpai?" Kitsune teased.

"I am a responsible person." Motoko replied dryly. "Don't worry I will look out at her in the school." Motoko said in a gentle tone while petting Benji's head. "You took quite a liking of that dog." Kitsune commented casually. "He is nice and friendly." Motoko replied with a smile. "He isn't perverted like a certain someone; he is much better looking than the pathetic male that manages this place."

Keitaro feels the sting on his pride in being considered worse looking than a dog, sure Benji has a shiny and silky black fur, but he was a dog. "I like the way that he behaves, as polite and attentive as a samurai." Motoko added with a smile. "I kind of feel jealous of Ranko-san; she has such a nice friend."

Motoko kisses Benji's nose while gently holding his head. "My, my; if you do that I will get jealous." Ranko teased entering on the living room on her uniform and seeing Motoko kissing Benji. "He is my plushie." Ranko playfully wraps her arms around Benji's neck. "But if you ask nicely I can borrow him for a while."

Motoko blushed and remains in silence, Benji was embarrassed and was thankful that wolves doesn't blush and even if was physically possible for him to blush his fur covers it. Benji stands up with Ranko on his back. "He is also quite strong." Ranko commented straddling Benji as if he was a horse.

"Why he let you do it and bites me when I try it?!" Kaolla protested. "Because you want all the time and hit him trying to get him to run." Ranko replied while Benji moves to the kitchen and drinks some water. "Well he was just thirsty and I was on his way." Ranko chuckled.

"So you are ready?" Motoko asked to Ranko. "Yeah, I will get a backpack and other stuff later." Ranko answered. "Since is my first day." Motoko nodded. "We will be going." Motoko said to the others. Kaolla and Shinobu move to their own schools. Benji leaves to the woods and changes to his human form.

Stretching Benji get used to his human form after one week staying almost solely on his wolf form. Benji leaves the woods moving to a mostly empty street, he is wearing black shoes, black trousers, a white shirt and a black jacket, his hair was styled in a simple short style with his fringe falling over his eyes in what Benji called 'hentai game main character style', it covered his eyes and the back was slightly long but in the overall the style was short and simple, the hair for some kind of reason didn't get in the way of his sight even thought it curtains over his eyes.

It was slightly annoying but is something that he would have to get used to. Benji moves to Motoko's school, he still have some business to settle with the principal and he has to keep his role of Ranko's brother. Even thought most of the girls are in their classes Benji's arrival is noticed and quickly was known by every student.

"Tachibana-san it is a pleasure seeing you again." A violet haired woman on her early thirties says to Benji when he enters on her office. "I say the same thing Himuro-san." Benji replied politely and with a smile. "I came to deal with the final arrangements of my sister's transfer to your school."

"She was already assigned to a homeroom." Tochiko said with a smile, gesturing to Benji take a seat. "In our last meeting which was too rushed for both of our liking you mentioned that you sister has some issues right?"

"Yes." Benji answered after sitting down. "You mind in calling the school's nurse? I think that she can back me up because her medical knowledge." The principal nodded and called the nurse by the phone "Amamiya-san mind in coming to my office?" She said when the line connects. "Please right now, I believe that it won't take long."

"She is on her way." Toshiko said after putting the phone back on the cradle. "Our father was very abusive." Benji started, it was half a fabricate story and half true. "I don't mean the normal slaps and punishment when misbehaving, I do mean abusive of the kind of senseless and needless beatings."

A knock on the door makes Benji stop talking. "Please come in." Toshiko called. "Tachibana-san this is our nurse Amamiya Sayuri-san." Toshiko said as a brown haired woman wearing a lab coat with a simple skirt suit bellow it. "It is nice to meet you." Benji said standing up. "I am Tachibana Benji."

After trading the pleasantries they sit again. "What I am going to say it can't leave this office." Benji said to the two, the curtain was closed; it was semi-transparent so the light entered but no one could see the room from the outside. "As I said our father was very abusive, our mother had some psychological issues herself. So she either turned the blind eye when he acted or actually supported him."

"That is horrible." Sayuri commented in horror. Benji unbuttons his shirt. "It isn't pretty but I feel that you would need evidence to agree with what I am about to ask." Benji explained as the two women blushed at his actions, Benji takes out his jacket and his shirt revealing the scar on his back from the battle against Taro as well few more old ones.

"As you can surely tell Amamiya-san these are old scars." Benji said seriously, nurse nodded examining his back. "These are the evidence of what happened to me, my sister for a while was safe, that until I was separated from my family. Once I was beaten so badly that I ended in a hospital and they ran away with her to avoid charges and other problems. Then all the rage was focused on her."

Benji puts his shirt back on. "Our father did several things on her, as selling her out to buy food and later steal her back, beating and stealing her food." Benji continued. "Once he even threw her on a pit filled with starving cats after he tied fish products on her, he did that several times. She is utterly terrified of cats, she also is very conscious about her body, she doesn't have scars but because she used to take some very serious beatings she used to hide the welts of her body, so she really disliked showing her body to others."

"We understand." Toshiko said seriously, it was horrible to hear what happened to Ranko. "While she can use a swimsuit she only changes when alone in a room." Benji added. "What I am asking is if is possible for her to not use the same facilities to change clothes, shower and if is possible the restroom that the others use. She might have a crisis."

"We fully understand that." Sayuri replied seriously. "I think that she can use the staff restroom to deal with her needs and as well change clothes between classes. If I am not wrong she can use the showers of the gym when it is a swimming class day, or the pool showers if is a day in the gym or in the court."

"I will inform the teachers about this arrangement and explain that she has certain special needs." Toshiko said agreeing with the nurse's proposal. "I appreciate your actions." Benji replied politely. "I also must warn that my sister as a bit of problems with authority, I mean after what happened to us it is natural that she distrusts authorities and people with authority. I am working on that with her so she is much more acceptant to teachers and other authorities now but sometimes she just recedes when she feels that she was wronged."

Toshiko nodded understanding. "She also has a quite deal of pride and is a bit of a tomboy." Benji continued; it would be better in the long run to keep them aware of Ranko's worst flaws. "She hates losing and thinking that she is weak, because of how our parents raised her she tends to use a lot of insults and provocations, once again I am working on that, but it takes time to fix all the wrong doings. She is honestly trying to improve and making real efforts towards the goal of becoming a better person, but she hates being treated like a girl and told to be more feminine, our father has his own view of women so she took a lot of abuse because of that."

"So she is a bit rude?" Toshiko asked. "Yes, but that is because our parents didn't gave her a proper education, after I found her after they ran I am trying to fix her actions." Benji answered. "Forcing her will only make her lash out as an animal, it is instinctive, she might say things that she doesn't mean when angry or embarrassed, she learned that expressing herself was a signal of weakness."

"It must be horrible for her." Sayuri commented horrified. "So you found her and you two ran away from your family right? I mean it doesn't sound like you two would stay with your parents." Benji smiled weakly. "Yes, it is true." He answered. "I am twenty one years old, so I am legally an adult and I can take care of my sister, she came with me so she can try having a normal life away from the abuse of our parents."

The two women nodded at his words. "We will keep all this in secret." Toshiko said seriously. "Thank you very much." Benji said, he felt bad for lying but once again it wasn't all that far from the truth, he just altered it a bit. "You two need help?" Sayuri asked worried.

"Thank you for the concern but we are fine." Benji answered with a smile. "I found a nice place for my sister to stay, I also have a job even thought I am trying to find another one since my current one keeps me moving around often. We got a fairly stable life right now, I think that getting on a regular and normal routine will be the best for her now."

Toshiko nodded agreeing. "About the list of books and other materials that she will need?" Benji asked to the principal. "Yes, I was forgetting about that." Toshiko said embarrassed, she gets a sheet of paper from her desk and hands to Benji. "There is everything that she will need including the textbooks."

"I will arrange them today so at latest next Monday she will have it all." Benji said with a smile. They talk a bit more over the arrangements for Ranko as well Benji finishes filling the needed paperwork. Sayuri returned to the nurse office much before Benji finished the needed bureaucracy.

His past as a fanfic writer made possible for him to weave a very complex, touching and believable story for their background, he blended real facts with fictitious ones, a story that would explain why Ranko and him doesn't contact or speak about their family and would make others want to keep it a secret, appealing to the motherly side of the women of the school was the best way to keep things safe and secret.

When he leaves the office two periods had passed and currently the students are in a small break between the classes. Benji noticed the girls whispering as he walks by on the halls. Benji smiled inwardly and kept a casual expression not affected by the girls' whispers and chatter.

In the courtyard on his way out Benji stops walking as a strong gust of wind blows, lifting dust and leaves. Benji hears a different sound in the wind and looks at the direction of it, he sees a hand towel flying, carried by the wind with a girl desperately chasing it.

Benji jumps lighting and grabs the towel as it passed above him. "Here." Benji said in a casual tone holding the towel for the running girl. "…Thank you." She replied taking the towel from him. 'She is quite cute.' Benji said to himself quickly checking the girl, her hair was light blue, not sky blue but not ocean blue either, somewhere in the between, her eyes are of the same color, her skin is white but not too light. "Be more careful." Benji advised with a smile.

The girl blushed and nodded, she wasn't used to seeing males in the school grounds, she bows at him. "Thank you." She said before running back on the way that she came. 'Enough looking at cute girls, it is bad enough that the air here is filled with hormones.' Benji thought turning back to the gate. 'She is around Ranma's age; I am over twenty one even thought I am looking like nineteen years old."

Benji places his hands on his trousers' pockets and leave the school ignoring the sound of the girls squealing, gossiping and chatting behind him, his enhanced senses could pick up fragments of the sentences and he knew that they were talking about him.

Ranko was trying hard to remain in her classroom and pay attention to the class, she hates staying still like that for hours; she liked to be moving around, doing something. But she agreed with Benji and accepted that she needed to learn more than just martial arts, still were hard to pretend to be a normal girl. "Tachibana." Mina one of Ranko's classmates said while Ranko was about to open bag to get her bento. "What?" Ranko replied looking up from her bag.

"An upperclassman is calling you." The brunette answered pointing with her chin to the door where Ranko saw Motoko standing; Motoko waves a greeting and gestures to Ranko to come closer. "Anything wrong Motoko-san?" Ranko asked when reaching the door. "Since you just got enrolled I thought in making you company for lunch." Motoko answered with a smile. "Since you don't have any friends or acquaintances in the school yet."

"I would like the company." Ranko replied. "Where you suggest for us to eat? I mean I will go get my bento and we can go to a nice spot." Motoko nodded and waits by the door while Ranko gets her Shinobu made bento. Motoko takes Ranko to the school's roof; there were a handful of groups of students sited in different spots of the roof, the roof was cool and there was a nice breeze blowing making the warm spring day not too hot or too cool.

Motoko finds the group with her kendo club friends and joins them introducing Ranko as both a friend as a person living in the same pension, Ranko was happy in getting a chance of getting friends with others and tries her best to be pleasant and polite; why ruin or refuse Motoko's kind offer. It was the thought in Ranko's mind, sure Motoko had some what she came to call 'Akane moments' with Keitaro but once you get past her sometimes hair trigger Motoko was a good and kind hearted person.

Besides Ranko had to admit that Keitaro deserved part of the hits, at least the ones that were caused by his chronic clumsiness and accidents, or the ones caused by him entering in a girl's room without waiting for a reply or the bath without seeing if there was anyone inside.

Once or twice it was within the range of accidents but nearly daily it was too much for being accidents and distractions, sure the girls especially Naru had to work on their temper, reactions and learn to hear an explanation before making conclusions, but Keitaro had it coming.

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Far from there Keitaro and Naru sneezed as one. "Someone must be speaking badly about us." Keitaro commented casually. "As if anyone would speak ill about a cute and innocent girl like me!" Naru snapped hitting Keitaro and sending him against a wall.

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Benji leaves a building neatly wrapped within one of his ninja techniques, on his left hand is a black duffel bag and he walks casually as a thug looking guy curses and kicks an ATM machine that is in a wall outside the building. Benji grinned and enters in an alley before releasing the invisibility technique that he was using to cloak himself.

'This should keep us going for a while.' Benji thinks pulling a thick wad of ten thousand yens bills from the bag and pocketing them before sending the bag to his hidden space. Moving back to the street Benji pulls the shopping list of materials for Ranko, he had shopped half of it before running out of cash. "Next are the textbooks."

Benji finishes the shopping making sure to have everything delivered to the Hinata-sou; he sighs inwardly at the fact that his presence there as human will be very limited and strict. Checking the time on his new watch Benji saw that was almost time for Ranko and Motoko's classes to end, because the make up story Toshiko quite willingly told to Benji several useful informations about the school.

'Well I guess that I can make a brotherly appearance on her first day.' Benji thought with a small smile tracing his lips. 'Making a good impression with Motoko now might be handy in the future, besides it will be good stay as a man after three weeks staying as a wolf over ninety percent of the time.'

Benji finds the school gate closed as it was when he left; he leans in the wall next to the gate and pulls the new cell phone that he had purchased earlier on that week. While Ranko was hanging around with the others Benji often slipped out of the pension to work on minor details of their fake identities, because he entered in a government building the papers were real, to make harder to prove fake Benji took numbers for birth certificates from dead newborns.

Sure he slightly altered the idea used in Highlander, but the idea was good so why ignore it, sure Benji expended hours to erase all the information about the two children whose birth certificate numbers he stole, Benji also went out of his way to find two that were born in the same year of Ranko and of his own assumed birth year.

That was the easy part, creating all the other papers as school records, medical files, altering dental records, driver's license for himself, passports for both, creating a whole and functional bureaucratic past was hard and troublesome, he couldn't use newer numbers or consecutive numbers for their documents, Benji was well aware that if their documents had the same serial number but ended with a different last digit would be very suspicious, even for siblings.

Actually Benji was still struggling on details of that bureaucratic past, his fabricated story gave them reasons to change their given and family names so he could be a little less detailed since people naturally thought that the Tachibana last name wasn't their real family name but a name that he picked after escaping from their abusive family, it wasn't all that far from the truth.

Benji checks the dialed number on his phone screen, he press talk and moves the phone to his ear. "Hai, Fujieda speaking." A young feminine voice said when the line connects. "Mizuki?" Benji asked, actually he knew who was but it was part of their interaction. "Hai Senpai!" She chirped. "Hold a second Nanao!"

Benji smiled inwardly as he hears the muffled voice of Mizuki speaking with her parents before the sound of her footsteps as she strides to someplace private, most likely her bedroom. "Now it is okay." Her voice came with a soft music on the background. "Anything new Mizuki?" Benji asked keeping his voice level and casual.

"I still haven't discovered anything about whatever organization that might be under this." She answered seriously. "But I got for sure confirmation that the two Tendo sisters and the Saotome woman survived, they are very badly wounded but they are alive, the other woman that was there is dead; at least I saw her being retrieved and placed in a body bag."

Benji nodded pleased; at least the scientist is dead that should set back things even more since Nabiki, Nodoka and Kasumi are badly hurt and likely to be in ICU. Even if those three she-devils survived two M67 grenades, but Benji preferred a Mills styled grenade since they have more explosives and shrapnel, he blamed the smaller grenades for the lack of killing power.

"What about the others?" Benji asked; he and Ranma fled Nerima without worrying about Ukyo, Konatsu and Ryoga. "The piglet is lost somewhere, actually he was with Ukyo and Konatsu, they were trying to open a cart in a festival and since Ryoga was carrying the stuff they ended lost." Mizuki answered to Benji's relief.

"I called on Ukyo's cell and told what happened, she discarded the items given by Nodoka and Nabiki, Konatsu and Ryoga did the same, when I last spoke with them they were in Okinawa. But I am guessing that they left it and moved to somewhere else." Mizuki added. "They haven't told me anything, they are acting as you, less I know better is for everyone, me included."

"And the state of everything?" Benji asked. "School and everything else." "The Nekohanten is closed since the Amazons left; the school is peaceful if you ignore the masses complaining about the loss of Ranma's girl form and Ukyo from their ogling ranks." Mizuki answered in a serious tone. "Well there are also Nabiki's followers who are looking for information about you and the others in a feverish pace, the poor gals have no idea of what the ice queen is planning or doing, and normally they don't care about it."

Benji guessed that much, those girls were so gullible or easily affected by Nabiki's schemes, still Benji had some resources of his own, as Mizuki and a couple of girls among Nabiki's ranks who he knew that were loyal to him, still Benji was wary in contacting them, he knew better than fully trusting on those girls.

"There are some police officers asking questions about you and the others as well investigating the so called gas explosion accident." Mizuki continued. "They know better than accusing you people of causing it, but they say that they are investigating if the fights in the area might have weakened the pipes and caused the explosions, and they are asking if anyone knows anything about your current location."

"I figured that they wouldn't give up on us just because of that." Benji murmured. "You be careful, you aren't a martial artist or are cursed, don't poke too much or call attention." "I know, I know." Mizuki chimed casually. "I am just a cute little computer geek. Don't worry I know very well my limitations now."

The bell rings signaling the end of the classes. "I have to go now." Benji said. "I call later for an update." "Bye-bye senpai." Mizuki replied before she hangs up. Benji closes the phone and pockets it. A crowd of girls leave the entrance in a steady flow, Benji remained on the place where he was, he smiled at a couple of girls that kept looking at him.

He chuckled inwardly as they blush and look away embarrassed, he absent minded takes notice of the multitude of colors of the hairs of the girls that leave the school, in some it was almost like the black color was highlighted with other colors, in others their hair was of what he could call in his world as anime color, it covered all the colors in the specter. Black, brown and dark brown are common but the unnatural colors are also common.

Benji saw that the girls ranged from fifteen to eighteen years old, he knows that Motoko is seventeen and Ranko is sixteen. Mizuki herself is sixteen too, Benji sighed recalling that he is using that girl for his own benefits using her sense of honor and debt so she can provide him with information, but he was facing an organization of a unknown size backed up by some of the craftiest women in Japan, they have access to the police so he was in disadvantage.

Benji spots a bundle of orange hair; he is familiar with that shade. "Ranko!" Benji called the much shorter girl. Ranko was surprised, true she heard about Benji being there earlier but had no idea that he was still around.

"Benji!" Ranko exclaimed running to him, she was happy in seeing him, Motoko guessed that she was happy in seeing her brother. "What are you doing here?" Ranko asked curious. "I was around since I was making the final arrangements for you study here." Benji replied with a smile. "I bought the books and other stuff that you will need."

Ranko nodded not really pleased but happy that Benji was working hard to give her an as normal as possible life. Ranko introduces Benji to Motoko, not that he needed to be introduced to Motoko but officially it was their first time seeing the other. "It is nice to meet you." Benji said politely.

"It is nice to meet you too." Motoko replied in the same way, she has no idea why she feels so comfortable around Benji. 'This odd.' Motoko said to herself while Benji walks with them to the Hinata-sou. 'I feel that I met him before, I comfortable around him, why he has this pleasant aura around him?'

Motoko studies Benji carefully while also paying attention to the conversation and chatting. 'His movements are precise too, just like Ranko's, they also have this animal vitality…I can't explain is just like Ranko's movements, gestures and speech being masculine…' Motoko concluded. 'But I wonder why his hair is raven when his sister's is orange, but one of them might be dying the hair…Ranko also looks every comfortable with him, the way that she looks up at him sure shows a great deal of affection towards him. Am I like that with my sister?'

Motoko noticed a bit too late that she accepted and followed the siblings to a café. "Motoko-chan what you want to eat?" Ranko asked to the brunette. Motoko quickly glances at the menu, but she wasn't planning to stop in the way home or buy anything so she only had little pocket money.

"Ask anything that you want." Benji said with a smile. "I am paying, don't be shy and ask anything that you like." "I don't want to impose!" Motoko exclaimed embarrassed. "You are not imposing, you are looking over by hyperactive little sister, the one imposing is me, so please have anything that you like." Benji replied casually.

Nodding embarrassed Motoko reads the menu embarrassed. "I want a pineapple, mint chocolate parfait with extra cream topping." Ranko said to the waitress. "A large one." The waitresses nodded and write down the order.

Motoko glanced on the menu and sees the size of Ranko's order. "How you are going to eat all that?!" Motoko asked surprised. "I have a different stomach for desserts." Ranko answered with a smile. "Her stomach is a portal to the fifth dimension." Benji said playfully. "She can eat, and eat, and eat, and eat… you can just wonder where she can put all that in such tiny body."

Ranko sticks her tongue out to Benji. "One slice of chicken with cheese pie and one iced tea." Benji said to the waitress, she dutifully takes the order. Motoko frantically reads the menu unable to decide on anything she isn't used to go to such places or asking anything too fancy, but she feels ashamed of asking her plain range of items, she fears that Benji might take that as an offence since he is paying.

Motoko decided in not having dessert since she isn't in the mood for sweets. "I will have a slice of beet with vegetables pie too, and an iced coffee." Motoko said deciding to settle with a salted pie, if Benji was having one like that than he wouldn't be offended of him asking a similar one. The waitress repeats the order before leaving.

Benji noticed how carefully Motoko is scrutinizing him; he ignores it knowing how suspicious she is towards males. Making a conversation with Motoko is quite easy, he is aware of many of her likes and dislikes, Ranko also help out even thought she is more focused on looking at the direction of the kitchen waiting for her parfait to come.

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Benji leaves the Hinata-sou still on his human form, a couple hours had passed since he was in the café with Motoko and Ranko, leaving the area around pension Benji looks around trying to find a good spot to change to his wolf form. Benji stops moving when a scent that he felt earlier on that day tickles his nose again.

A lilting, dewy scent which, for some reason, made his mouth water, he doesn't know if that is a perfume or a natural female scent, he did know for sure that it belonged to a woman. It was the third time that he felt that particular scent; he could tell that it belonged to the same person and not to three different ones wearing the same fragrance. It wasn't Haruka since she smelled like cigarettes mixed with her perfume and natural fragrance.

The first time it was while he was shopping for Ranko's school material and her extra uniforms, the second it was inside the train with Motoko and Ranko, the scent was strong there but he couldn't isolate it in the crowd of men and women in there. Benji sniffs the air some more and just lightly moves his face to the sides trying to locate the scent.

Benji dashes to a side street and uses one of the techniques that Shiaki taught him, it was a simple illusion of himself running down the street, at the same time Benji cloaks himself with the invisibility technique. As he expected his pursuer chased him, the person was good, she kept a nice distance between them, far enough to not be easily detected but close enough to easily follow him.

Benji grabs the girl by the neck when she passes by the small alley where he was hiding, she gasped in surprised but is unable to shout because Benji slams her back against a wall hard. The air of her lung is expelled and Benji tightens the grip on her throat, it was strong enough to hold her as well severely diminish her air intake, and that was the idea, keeping her on the brink of suffocation would keep her confused and panicking.

The pursuer is a woman, not on her early or late twenties, around her early thirties if not mid thirties, but her body was firm and tight as from one with half of her age, her hair was blonde and Benji could see the blue color of her half closed eyes as she struggles against the wall.

She was wearing an outfit that left little of her body to the imagination, it was a kind of red skirt suit but designed to reveal skin and look sexy without crossing the border of being slutty, and the woman filled the dress very well. Benji thought that the outfit was fit to clubbing and not to daily life, especially the fact that she wore a collar and tie that doesn't match the skin tight top that exposed her stomach. Lastly she was wearing red high heels and stockings.

Benji confirmed that the scent came from her, and it was stronger than ever, it stirred the beast within him, filling him with a familiar hunger. Holding his instincts Benji scanned the woman once again, deciding that was impossible to conceal a weapon on the almost inexistent mini-skirt and skin tight outfit Benji lessen the pressure of his hand just a bit, but keeping his nails over her arteries, in that way if she tries anything he can easily slit her throat.

The woman noticed that, with the slightly increased air supply she could finally notice that she was caught and wouldn't be harmed if she doesn't attempt anything. She looks straight at Benji's eyes with her blue eyes; he had to admit that her eyes have a beautiful color.

She wore a touch of makeup that enhanced her beauty, Benji was well aware that he is in front of a woman that has experience in seducing men and is well aware of her looks, skills and seduction abilities. Benji could feel strong muscles under the smooth skin and soft flesh under his fingers, he kept himself ready to release his claws and tear that pretty and slim neck in a blink of an eye.

End of the chapter three:

I want to thank everyone who read, reviewed and placed this story on their favorites and alerts.

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Nabiki cringed in pain, it was too early for her to be out of the bed but someone had to run the circus, Nodoka was far too wounded for that and Kasumi isn't fit for that kind of work.

Her blindness wasn't a problem, having or not physical eyes didn't mattered to Nabiki's true sight, she was still able to see the countless paths that the future has to offer, but since the failed capture attempt the future was covered in a shroud of mist and shadows, she could only see few glimpses.

Nabiki was against the idea of forceful capture, at least such reckless one, is Kasumi used sleeping drugs on the food or drinks then Benji and Ranma would have been captured with ease, they trusted on them, the wouldn't ever suspect that they would do something like that.

Her particular plan was to make the two love them, and when captured the identity of the capturers should remain a secret so in the unlikely case of them escaping they would seek for help from them to once again being captured when not expecting. But Kasumi was against that plan, she didn't want to use of such subtle methods.

And that was why Kasumi didn't held any real power on her life, she could be cunning and cruel but she lacked the finesse and the true skills for being truly dangerous. Nabiki cringed again, breathing was too painful on her current state, not much for her lower body but in the face, where the shrapnel tore her eyes; it was so painful and sore that even breathing was a torture.

But Nabiki ignored it, she had other worries, Benji once confided to her that if escaping discreetly of Japan for any reason he would first throw a fake lead to a place that he would avoid. She already found that fake lead, Nabiki had to smile he had selected Paris, France.

The two students that got the tickets from strangers were questioned, they didn't revealed anything of useful, a hot chick with black hair and a tall hunk with blonde hair gave them the tickets saying that they couldn't go because personal issues and was giving away the tickets to anyone who wanted, the young couple accepted in the spot, they packed two weeks worth of clothes and left without even caring about school.

Nabiki knew that Benji was smart enough to buy two ways tickets, it was less suspicious like that, a young couple in a honeymoon or some kind of fun trip called little attention, it could be even a case of a short lover's wanting to run away for a while so their families would accept their relation, no one would really mind.

But buying one way tickets for two would call a lot of attention, a young couple getting one way tickets to anywhere was suspicious, lover's eloping, kidnapping, running away from home, countless scenarios would be raised and would make things hard for them since Benji doesn't appears to be as old as he is and Ranma is underage.

Nabiki smiled, it was like playing a strategy game she knew that Benji got a three weeks head start on her but other than that he was in disadvantage, she has an entire organization to back her up and he only has himself and Ranma, and Ranma wasn't all that subtle.

Fifteen thousand dollars and change, that was the amount that Benji and Ranma managed to withdraw from their credit cards while in the Juuban area, they used ten different ATM machines before discarding the cards, before that they gave away their cell phones and watches to a group of students.

That stalled the search for a couple of hours, nothing really major, with that amount of money Benji could bribe people in boats and buy tickets. She knew his plan; he was drunk when he told her that so she was sure that he didn't recalled it.

He would go to Hokkaido from there to the north most harbor of the island, find a ship that is about to sail to Russia and bribe the captain to take them to the Russian harbor, from there Benji would flee to someplace where he could disappear in the crowd like in China.

Nabiki had already deployed men to those locations, in China was a bit harder to keep a effective search party because the number of areas to get in, so Nabiki focused on searching on the places where he would go as Shanghai and Hong-Kong. It was a matter of time for her to effectively locate Benji who fled out of the country, she had contacts on the underworld out there, Benji would need documents for himself and Ranma; she knows that he won't contact Cologne, so that left Benji with the option of forgers.

Benji would appear on the radar when he needed to get more money, she knows that he will try to have to get food, clothes and other needed things for a comfortable life, for that he would need to get money and therefore a job, to get a job he would need documentation, any other job that wouldn't require them would give a pay that was next to nothing and that wouldn't keep him and Ranma fed.

Stealing or using their skills to make money as street performers would also appear on her grid, as street performers many would see them using their unique skills and give them money, it would overexpose them which would raise a flag. Stealing would leave some sort of evidence as tore safes or walls broken as if were hit by demolition balls, also would raise a flag.

Nabiki never realized that Benji could easily steal in a subtle way, after all she never really saw Benji using the stealth of a ninja, as far she knew he only knew how to fight more or less like a ninja; she had fallen for his trap before even knowing it. Deceit and farce are the ninja's greatest weapons and Benji used them as well as she does.


	4. Glimpsing the underworld

Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic. This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Love Hina I don't own or any of the characters of those shows. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed: Benji Himura.

This story begins in the Ranmaverse somewhere in the middle of the events of the chapter thirteen, actually between the release of Hinako and the events of the Gamble King events.

In the Love Hina timeline in the manga it stars after the chapter twenty six but before the chapter twenty seven.

This is a crossover so both stories casts or at least part of them will interact and there will be changes on both stories and on the plotline of Outcast Ranma. For anyone following the main story this scenario doesn't follow the same 'timeline' from the main story, it works on the line that timeline show on the story is the original one.

"Text" Talked sentences.

'Text' Thoughts.

-Text- Sounds effects.

(Text) Talked sentences in a foreign language as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

**Text**: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

_Text_: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

"_Text"_ Alteration in the voice, not in the tone but the voice itself.

Chapter four: Glimpsing the underworld

The beast stirred within Benji, he knew that he was facing another predator, one similar of his kind, he wouldn't let his guard down or his instincts cloud his decision, if she was a menace she would die and he would make sure of killing her for good.

Coughing softly and lightly gagging she tries to inhale more air, Benji lessen the pressure a little more, just a hair of movement, but the woman clearly felt the difference and breathed with more ease. "Now why you are following me?" Benji asked hissing low. "Don't lie because I can tell very well if you do."

She reaches to his arm; Benji increases the pressure and let his claws grow a little puncturing her skin and making blood drops squeeze out from the punctures. She hisses softly. "I am not trying to escape." She said in a voice that could make the most innocent conversation sound like invitations to a world of sinful acts.

Benji could feel the hairs in the back of his neck bristling at her voice, he couldn't tell if the pain from his claws gave her pleasure or not. She runs her right hand on his arm, from the wrist all the way up to his shoulder, even tracing his shoulder blade. Her touch was feather light but clearly was moving as searching for something beneath the clothes.

She repeats the gesture on his right arm using her left hand. "You don't have a brand?" she asked confused. "You don't belong?" Benji was starting to get an idea of what the woman was, he was right on his assumptions, she was a werewolf too, but she was a real werewolf while he is a Jusenkyo wolf.

"I am different from you." Benji answered in a plain tone, no need to let her know that he was surprised in coming in contact with a real werewolf, her question about a brand hinted that there was a true lycanthrope society in the underworld. "This terrain is out limits." She said seriously. "This place is forbidden to be claimed."

"As I said I am different than you." Benji replied. "Our kind has long agreed in not claim Hinata as territory." She stated firmly. "Your presence here might bring consequences. Others might try following your example and if that happen the Urashima family might take this as offence and set an offensive against us."

'So the legendary Hina-obaasan is indeed powerful and influential, I have to make more of a research on the Urashima family.' Benji thought, if something would make lycans act like that then it deserved to be examined, they might become powerful allies against Nodoka and the Tendos.

"I am not like you and you aren't like me." Benji repeated once again. "What for you is a birthright for me is a curse." The woman's eyes lithe with understanding. "Now I understand why you aren't claimed." She said seriously. "What kind of sorcerer or mage you angered to be cursed with the lycanthropy?"

"No need for me to answer that." Benji replied. "And I am the one make the questioning here." She nodded lightly; actually the motion opens the punctures on her neck a little more. "I was selected to investigate the rumor about a large black wolf living in Hinata, because the size of the named wolf it was clear that it was a lycan." She said seriously. "At least it is clear to our kind, for anyone else is just a bigger dog that looks like wolf, the kind that humans like to breed because look cool."

"Now the question is what you will do with that information." Benji said seriously, she followed him during the entire day if not longer than that, it was risky to let her just walk away with that sort of information. "Easy there boy." She exclaimed knowing the not subtle innuendo of his words. "Killing me would only make you look bad. Don't make a rash mistake because the impulsiveness of the youth."

Benji grinned, his appearance had benefits since elders think that he is a teen when he is over twenties and he was naturally calmer and level headed than the average teen. "And what benefits letting you live would bring me?" Benji asked casually as if he doesn't really care about it, which he really doesn't.

"I can teach you things." She answered running her fingers on his arm. "I am experienced, better than any little girl that you had in the past." "Temptating but sex isn't enough to make me consider that." Benji replied flatly. "I am sure that many would have fallen for that but I think more with my upper head than with my lower one."

She smiled actually pleased with his words. "You are smarter than the average." She purred in a smoky tone. "I didn't mean only that, even thought as you said is enough to get me out of most trouble. I can teach you our art, techniques that can make you stronger."

"And what is attached to that?" Benji asked smirking. "Being our ally or joining my pack, you can decide." She answered sweetly. "Think about it, you can have the protection of others like us, we would help you when you needed." "I am not much of a pack guy." Benji replied. "As temptating as it is to join one, but I am more interested on the techniques."

Benji flips her over and lightly punctures a point on the base of her head, she hissed again at the feeling. "This is a very special point." Benji said pressing her body against the wall. "If left alone within one hour your muscles will shut down and your nerves will stop getting the commands from your brain, in layman terms you will suffer of a total muscle failure and choke to death since you won't be able to breath or your heart won't pump blood, I never really used this before so I don't know exactly how you will die."

Benji can feel her tensing under him. "This is just a safeguard." He added. "If you run away, try to kill me or get me captured you will die, if you are honest with your words I will press the counter point before the deadline. Think on it as a nice leash to keep you on the right path and behaving nicely. Or you thought that I trust in any were-bitch that crosses my path wiggling a nice rear end?"

"You are much smarter than the average." She gasped between him and the wall. "Now we will walk out of this alley with you holding on my left arm as any other couple." Benji instructed. "We will move to a quiet place as a café get a discreet table and you will explain things to me in detail, this isn't the kind of thing that should be done in a back alley."

She nodded submissively while Benji takes two steps back. 'Indeed a very nice rear end.' Benji thought as she pushes himself away from the wall, she moves to his left side wiping the blood away from her neck with a tissue, and holds on his arm as she would do with a lover that she is familiar with. Benji nodded pleased and they leave the alley.

'She is dangerous.' Benji thought he kept his guard up not only towards the woman but to the surroundings. 'Not only in the combat area but in beauty, she is too beautiful to be easily trusted.' Benji snorted inwardly. 'A dangerous beauty, I lived with several of those too, but this one is different, she is skilled with her weapons when the girls in Hinata-sou are barely beginning to learn how to use them. Next to her they are all toddlers.'

Benji allowed her to choose the café that they would use, it was small and looked comfortable and cozy, it was quite empty because the hour. Benji decides on a table in a corner and sits with his back against a wall, in that location he could see well most of the café and didn't had to worry about attacks from behind, and since she was facing him Benji figured that she would react even if was just looking at the direction of anything that might come from his blind spot.

Benji pays close attention as she starts to telling about the werewolf society, since he played RPG he isn't really surprised with the fact that it existed, but the width of the whole magical society that she explained to him surprised him, within the normal society there was one composed of people with magic powers and abilities, they kept sorcery, magic, demons and other mythical creatures in secret from the modern's society knowledge, but in certain places, special focal points the control was lessened without much harm.

Nerima is one of those places, in Nerima people just risked those kinds of things from their minds, altering and removing them from their memories replacing it with something that they can believe, in Nerima it was martial art related stuff. Juuban was rumored to be a focal point too.

Benji feels a chill running on his spine at the idea of pretty sailor suited soldiers, but he hides that from the woman. Benji understood what he decided to call it veil, as it was in Werewolf the apocalypse, after all it served the same purpose, but as she explained that effect was only effective within those areas and outside them people would see and remember of what happened.

Some people scratched that as illusions or tricks that their minds played on them; others speak up and are treated as crazy or disillusioned by others, some decide to keep their mouth shut and forget about it, others go crazy depending of what they witness, the reactions varied and some were pretty bad.

Benji snorted inwardly, as if he doesn't know the value of secrecy. Within the magic society there was places where the secrecy wasn't needed, cities founded and populated by mages, wizards and other people touched by the supernatural in one way or another, schools were build to teach the next generation of magic users.

In Japan there was a sizable concentration of schools teaching sorcery as well reiryouku powered martial arts, Benji nodded aware of the fact of the martial arts part of the tale, he was a living proof of that and for the past three weeks awakes with the main living proof of that attached to him.

There was a council of elders and leaders, they are all part of a bigger council similar to the UN in the normal society, that council created the laws that the entire society follows and as long those laws are followed the people could do anything that they wanted as long was within the law of both societies.

Benji isn't surprised at all to hear that even within the magic society there were criminals, pariahs and others types of individuals or groups that were considered evil or lawbreakers, after all wherever there is power there will be a dark side of it and people who use their power for their own profit.

Benji didn't entirely agreed in the so called policy of only using magic and other powers solely for the benefit of others, sure he aided and helped people out of goodness of his heart but he wouldn't become a hero of justice and spout lines about righteousness and goodness, he had selfish goals too the current main one is to drive a foot thick spiked pole up Nodoka's, Kasumi's and Nabiki's asses and display them on a public square, or even better in worldwide live transmission.

But leaving the sadism and bloodlust aside Benji continued to hear her explanation, groups of magical individuals as well individuals were allowed to live around as they wished. The control was mostly made by the normal society ways as customs and other systems; magic crime management was complex and was handled by mages and other people under the direct command of the council.

Benji wonders why such magic society doesn't seal Jusenkyo and prevent others from falling on those accursed springs, if Benji got his hands in one of those councilmen he would give him a piece of his mind as well a taste of his claws. Benji notices the woman looking over his shoulder; he felt the sakki behind his back alerting of someone with murderous intent about to attack him from behind.

Benji jumps forward bringing the table against the woman's stomach, actually ripping the table from the place that was bolted before the edge of the wood impacts on her stomach. The wall behind Benji breaks sending debris around the area as a werewolf on his war form bursts inside the café.

Benji grinned seeing the werewolf, his fur was brown and gray, with masses of the two colors around his large body. Benji dashes at the werewolf; Benji's grin just widens seeing that the massive creature can't follow his movement, pulling two knives from his sleeves Benji slashes the werewolf turning him on ribbons of flesh.

A second werewolf attacked coming from the kitchen, it is brandishing a large cleaver, his fur was totally gray but it was of different shades all over his body. Benji moves at the werewolf and attacked with the same fury that he had attacked the first. Benji's silver edges cleave easily both the flesh and bone; the hide wasn't even lessening the speed of the attacks.

Benji spins on his heels holding his right hand knife in a reverse grip, he slams his fist on the breast of a were-something that he can't identify, burying the blade on the chest of the creature and nailing the creature against a wall. A large were-bear charged at Benji at full speed, grinning Benji throws his left hand knife on the air and grabs the bloodied tip with his right hand before throwing the edge hard against the were-bear.

With a pleased smile on his lips Benji sees the were-bear falling on his knees with the blade buried on its neck, Benji knew very well that it not only got the larynx but broke the vertebra and severed the medulla, since the blade was made of a silver and steel alloy it was deadly to lycanthropes, Benji never met them before but he was ready to a sudden meeting.

Benji hears a wet cough in the direction of the table, he sees the blonde lying on the floor with the table over her flat stomach and a piece of splintered wood on her neck, and she had more injuries because the high speed debris that hit on her. Benji crouches next to her.

He could save her; he had trained a little and was able to use his energy to fix up some damages, mostly cauterizing wounds, but with a severed jugular not even the impressive healing of a werewolf would be able to fix her up before she bled to death. "From the lack of screams those four where the cook, the waitress and the two other 'clients' of the café." Benji said in a casual tone. "I can't pick up any other sound in this place, not even a sign of life, but since we entered here I could smell your fear, so what will you do now? You will tell me what the plan was?"

"I was supposed to lure…" She started gasping for air. "…you here…they would…capture…you…sell…as…slave…in another…country…" Benji sighed and tears the collar of her shirt; he imagined that from her eyes. "As happened to you." Benji said seeing the metal choker on her neck, under the unfitting collar of her top.

She choked on her blood not answering him. "You have two choices now." Benji said snapping the choker with his hands. "The first is to die; I can ease it for you if you wish to die. The other is to change owners, you are a beta or gamma, maybe even lower, I don't know for sure, but I could tell from how easily you submit that you are anything but an alpha. So what is going to be?" She closes her blue eyes in silently answering him.

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Ranko was having dinner with the others in the Hinata-sou, while asked if worried about Benji Ranko just said that it was normal for him to take walks or even just nap in some secret spot that he would find. Inwardly Ranko was a little worried since even for diversion technique it was getting too late for Benji to arrive as a wolf.

Keeping a light conversation about her day in school and other topics the mood of the dinner is light. The sound of the back door opening and closing is heard, it is followed by the sound of paws clicking on the wood floor. Benji passes by the dinning room walking tiredly, actually seeming downcast.

"Hey Benji where you were all day long?" Kaolla asked cheerfully. Benji looks at their direction, halting his march for a moment before resuming it and climbing the stairs. "It is just me of that thing seemed depressed?" Naru asked pointing to the direction that Benji went with her chopsticks.

"Maybe he is just tired from running around all day." Shinobu replied casually. After that Ranko tried to keep a casual atmosphere and enjoy dinner but she was worried about Benji, when done she moves to her room to check on her as soon she placed her dishes on the sink.

"Benji there is anything wrong?" Ranko asked when entering on their room, Benji was lying on the middle of the room. "Just had a long day." Benji replied with his eyes closed and head resting over his front paws. Ranko raises her eyebrow confused, she sits next to Benji.

"You don't seem hurt." She commented. "I can't see any matted fur, so you aren't bleeding either." She sniffs Benji and frowns. "And what is that scent?" Ranko asked covering her nose. Benji had an idea of what she meant but remained silent. "Move, I will bath you and make sure that this stench leaves you!" Ranko said holding Benji's neck and pulling him.

"Come on Benji help me here! I even went to the school as you said!" Ranko exclaimed seeing that she was dragging Benji but he wasn't moving on his own. Benji sighed and stands up unbalancing Ranko and making her fall back, by consequence pulling him with her making him fall over her.

"A little warning next time." Ranko complained rubbing her head. "What is wrong with you Benji? Why you are like this?" "I am tired." Benji replied, Ranko sighed and pushes him away from her and takes him to the bath, making sure that it is empty before entering.

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"Is there anything wrong Ranko?" Motoko asked to the orange haired girl after she leaves the bath with Benji. "I guess that Benji worn himself running around all day." Ranko replied with a small smile. "I can just wonder on what he was doing all day long." 'And since he isn't telling me anything that is all that I can do anyway.' She added on her mind.

Motoko nodded understanding and lightly rubs Benji's head before moving to the bath. "You know that eventually you will have to tell me what happened after you left, right?" Ranko asked in a whisper knowing that Benji can hear her very well. Benji nodded. 'But it isn't today.' Benji thought as they move to their room, he was tired and wanted to sleep.

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Benji's ears move as the sound of running footsteps tickle them, looking at the clock over Ranko's desk Benji sees that is not even two in the afternoon, deciding to return to his nap Benji's plans are interrupted by Naru and Keitaro bursting on the room. Standing up and barking once is enough to make the two ronins stop running. "We have a serious reason to be here." Keitaro hurriedly said. Benji barked once more as if saying. "What?" "That turtle!" Naru exclaimed running inside and trying to grab the flying turtle. 'You are annoying Tama-chan.' Benji thought seeing the flying out of the room, since he didn't heard a cry from Motoko Benji moves out of the room and lightly scratches the door of the swordswoman.

"Hi there Benji." Motoko greeted him warmly. "You want to come in?" Benji nodded seeing Motoko still on her school uniform. "Ranko stopped by a cake shop with some classmates of hers." Motoko said while letting Benji enter on the room. 'It is the very same thing than in the anime and manga.' Benji thought looking inside more carefully.

Motoko sits next to Benji lightly scratching his ear. 'A little more to left…' Benji thought at the feeling. '…wait……I am not here for that…' "Anything wrong?" Motoko asked seeing how Benji's ears stood up; normally he got quite relaxed when she did that. "Did I do it too hard?"

Benji almost answered that she was doing it too light, sniffing the air and trying to detect the sounds of the turtle Benji remained still. Motoko looked at him confused and let out a startled cry when he leaps over her. Benji grinned inwardly holding the 'dressed up' turtle with his teeth.

"Turtle!" Motoko shrieked seeing the turtle on Benji's mouth. "Wait…you knew that…that thing was around, that is why you came…to prevent it from scaring me." Motoko said seeing Benji moving out of the room, she was mostly right on that. Seeing Naru, Shinobu and Keitaro running at his direction Benji sited on the hall.

"Nice boy." Naru said seeing the flailing turtle on his mouth. "Hand it to me now." Benji let go of the turtle when Naru holds it. "I am starting to take a liking of that dog." Naru commented. "He is more useful than you Keitaro." "That hurts Narusegawa. It hurts right here." Keitaro said in tears pointing to his heart.

"Thank you Benji." Motoko said walking to Benji bugging his neck and giving a kiss on his muzzle. "Why you are thanking him?" Naru asked curious and surprised, Motoko displaying emotions like that was something foreign. "He saved me from that turtle." Motoko answered with her arms around Benji's neck. "Come on Benji I have a reward for you." She said gently pulling Benji back to her room.

Keitaro blushes at the idea of reward and his nose begins to bleed. "Pervert!" Naru elbowed Keitaro to LEO. "What a pervert imagining filthy things between Motoko-chan and that dog." Naru muttered moving back to her bedroom; Shinobu blushed and returns to her room to clean it before starting dinner.

'I really could get used to this…' Benji thought with his head resting on Motoko's lap, she is scratching his ear with just the right amount of pressure that he likes. 'I wonder if she would get mad about this when she learns about me…' Even the idea of being hit by Motoko wasn't stronger than the need to remain there and let the girl work her magic on him.

Motoko giggled softly. "What kind of wolf purrs?" she asked in a light tone. 'I do……' Benji answered on his mind. 'The kind that wanted to be a werecat and not werewolf, but then again this is just too good to complain...' Motoko smiled comfortable at the situation, she finds it calming and soothing, the comfortable weight of Benji's head on her lap, she warm and silky feel of his fur on her hand.

"I am getting jealous of Ranko." Motoko murmured, Benji who was almost sleeping wakes, his ears perking when capturing her words. "Having you all for herself, maybe I should get a pet too." Now it was Benji's turn of feeling a pang of jealousy.

Motoko chuckled softly when feeling Benji's reactions. "Now don't worry about it, I don't know if I would like taking care of a pet." Motoko cooed softly. "I can be pretty violent sometimes, besides it isn't just any pet please me. I think that I can live with handfuls of stolen moments of you." 'Now I am the one wondering if I would live if you learn the truth.' Benji thought seriously. Ignorant of Benji's thoughts Motoko continued to caress the cursed werewolf.

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Benji yawned lying on the entrance, Ranko was getting along rather well in school, adding Motoko's comments, Ranko's stories and some reports by Toshiko Benji got a pretty good picture of Ranko's new school life. Ranko was getting along well with the other girls and even joined the cooking club which filled some of her free hours.

A shriek from Keitaro and a war cry from Motoko signals that the manager did something wrong. Keitaro rushes to Kitsune. "Kitsune she will kill me do something!" Keitaro pleaded to the fox girl while Motoko flaring her battle aura walks out of the entrance. 'Hold a second I think that Keitaro walked on Motoko when this happened on the manga.' Benji thought. 'Well I guess that I should do something about this."

"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Keitaro shouted in pain when feeling a set of razor sharp and steel hard teeth sinking on his left leg from behind. With a strong neck movement Benji throws Keitaro on the direction of the stairs. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!" Keitaro shrieked while falling down the stairs. Benji spits a bundle of fabric and blood on the floor, actually trying to take the taste of manager from his mouth. 'Yuck... definitively not tasty…' Benji muttered licking his lips trying to get the taste from his mouth.

"Anyone understood what just happened?" Kitsune asked to the others. "I have an idea." Naru answered. "He is going nuts and we have to kill him. Motoko-chan please have the honor... EEEKKK!" Naru shrieked seeing the glare from the samurai girl. "Come on Benji I am sure that you want to get the taste of that scum of a man out from your mouth." Motoko said gently caressing his neck; Benji follows Motoko inside the building.

"It is just me or Motoko is getting awfully close of that wolf?" Kitsune asked to the others. "Well they are getting along rather well." Shinobu commented. "I mean since that day that he prevented Tama-chan from landing on Motoko-senpai she is even nicer to him."

"I find scary the way that she is getting along with it." Naru said seriously. "It is almost like that thing knows exactly what Motoko-chan is saying." "Benji understands everything that we say." Ranko commented climbing the stairs. "And I found this downstairs." She added throwing Keitaro by the ankle on the middle of the yard.

"Is he still alive?" Kitsune asked poking Keitaro with a stick, Kaolla does the same. "Looks like to me." Ranko replied. "So what happened?" "Keitaro entered on Motoko-chan's room when she was changing." Naru answered. "Fine it was an accident this time since I was with him too, but when Motoko-chan was saying to Keitaro face consequences like a man your thing bit Keitaro and threw him over the stairs."

"Well it explains the bite mark on his leg." Ranko commented. "I am going to take a bath now. One of my friends accidentally dumped sesame seed oil on me." "Anything particular that you want for dinner tonight Ranko-san?" Shinobu asked casually. "Okonomiaki." Ranko answered. "I am on the mood for some." "Sure, we have the ingredients here." Shinobu exclaimed happily.

"Why no one care…?" Keitaro murmured standing up. "You had it coming." Naru spat. "You got lucky that the dog attacked you because Motoko-chan would most likely fillet you." "I don't know which fate is worse." Keitaro said rubbing his bitten leg. "Filleted alive is worse." Ranko answered with a smile. "Not a pretty thing."

"Why it sounds like you have seen that?" Keitaro asked scared. Ranko smiled enigmatically and continued her walk to her room. "Some times that girl freaks me out more than her dog." Naru muttered. "I kind of like her." Kitsune replied. "Things are funnier since she came."

Dinner time came, using an electric grill over the table Shinobu starts fixing the okonomiakis, and Benji runs out of the dinning room as a bat flying out from hell. Ranko smiled pleased, she wouldn't admit to the wolf but it was her intention since the beginning. 'That is what you get for fawning over Motoko.' Ranko thought with a pleased nod as the others looked confused.

"Is Benji okay?" Shinobu asked worried. "He just has a mortal hate towards okonomiaki. Just the scent is enough to make him sick." Ranko answered flipping his okonomiaki with ease, helping Ukyo on her shop gave her skills on that. "Don't mind him; his stomach will be so twisted that he won't need dinner tonight." 'Since he is a werewolf his even sharper senses make it way worse than the normal.' She added to herself.

Motoko worriedly looks at the direction that Benji fled to. 'That was mean.' Motoko thought while looking at Ranko who is carelessly putting pork toppings on her okonomiaki. 'She knew how he would react and still acted like nothing would happen, with a sensitive nose as his the scent must be overbearing.'

Outside in the woods Benji throws up the contents of his stomach. "Okay…Shinobu had no idea that I hate okonomiaki…" Benji muttered on his human form. "It was an honest accident…" The violent cramps makes him throw up more, in human form getting sick was less painful than in wolf form.

End of the chapter four:

Author explanation corner:

Magic underworld: I am using as base the magic society of Mahou sensei Negima. Seeing from the manga it is clear of a worldwide magic society so I am placing one view of it.

Blonde's choker: A solid metal choker with a lock, it doesn't vanish or change when transforming, since is snug changing forms strangles her and/or crush her windpipe. Chokers, collars and other neckpieces can be used to bind and restrain prisoners/slaves, as anyone knows there are several designs for it. For why she doesn't broke it herself is simple, she isn't strong enough in human form and she would have her windpipe crushed or choke to death before being able to break in war form.

Slave trade: Even now days is a practice that takes place in the underworld, in magical society were mages have smart animal familiars it makes sense that some traditions would allow the possession of slaves, specially places with previous traditions of slavery. It is known fact that criminal organizations kidnaps and/or trick people to be sold or used as slaves, the same happens in the magic world.

Okonomiaki reaction: I hate okonomiaki; the scent of the stuff makes me sick, so with enhanced senses is only natural that it will get easier to get sick when smelling the stuff.

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"Any progress?" Nodoka asked to Nabiki, the Tendo girl is standing with the aid of a crutch. "Not much." Nabiki answered trying to not let her frustration and tiredness appear on her voice, since the explosion sleep was something that Nabiki hardly got because the pain. "Based in a theoric escape plan that Benji slipped when drunk I placed search groups in certain areas of the country to intercept him, but he had too much of a lead before I could take over the operation."

"Three days." Nodoka replied. "Time enough for him to get to Hokkaido by train and get a ship for Russia." Nabiki said with an inwardly sigh. "No one in the harbors saw a couple that matches Benji and Ranko's descriptions, not even in the cursed forms or with disguises, but information from drunken sailors and harbor workers aren't all that reliable."

"What is the so called plan?" Nodoka asked seriously. "Flee to Russia and from there leave to another country using means that wouldn't require identification as train to border cities, cross the country and repeat the operation until arriving on a pre-selected country to hide." Nabiki answered. "He said China, based on the population density as well current development of the main cities they wouldn't be easily discovered there. And there is the possibility of contacting the amazons. I had deployed teams in Russian harbors near of the Japanese's trading areas; I also send teams to Hong-Kong and Shanghai."

Nodoka remained in silence. "What about Brazil?" Nodoka asked. "That is one of the biggest countries of the planet and his claimed homeland, it is rather obvious that he would flee to an area that he has extensive knowledge of and we don't." "But a trip to Brazil wouldn't allow him to enter on the country without papers, by air it takes two days, by ship it can take months." Nabiki replied. "The baseline of his escape plan is to avoid contact and remaining in one place as much as he can to avoid identification."

"But he could be using a different approach." Nodoka pointed out. "Once in a ship, as let's say a container carrier it would be smooth sail until the next harbor, and if that harbor is let's say on Australia or the US from there he can move to another ship, bribe another captain to get to another country, jumping from ship to ship until he arrives in Brazil, and by the sheer size of the country locating him there would be virtually impossible."

Nabiki bite her thumbnail, it was a possibility that she didn't want to think about. It was a logical assumption but was just too obvious of a move to be taken when escaping, Benji would know that they would watch over for him leaving to Brazil since was his homeland.

"How many ships departed from Japanese harbors to Brazil since the incident?" Nodoka asked. Nabiki pulls a PDA from her pocket and searches for the information, the machine directly connected to her optic nerve by a small chip. "Two." Nabiki answered. "One ship taking cars and the other electronic parts."

"How many ships left Japan to harbors of international trade or countries with active international trade?" Nodoka asked. "Seven." Nabiki answered trying to not show how nervous and embarrassed she is. "Nine ships that could lead him out of the country." "Check the crews of the ships; find if any of them has members that would be temptated by bribing." Nodoka commanded. "Don't limit yourself solely in some information that you got from him when drunk, what are the odds of him following that plan? What China holds that would benefit him on the run? The amazons? If they were useful they wouldn't have fled leaving him behind. The disguise of a crowd? It is too slim, if he wants a crowd he can go to the US, England, Brazil, there are countless countries that would give him large populated areas with members of many cultures for him to blend in. He will try to call the littlest attention possible, totally disappear in the crowd, for that he would go to a place where his bloodline and Ranma's won't stand out and that place is Brazil it holds one of the biggest concentration of Japanese outside Japan because the immigration of the past."

Nabiki nodded in silence. "And check names too, he is too smart to keep the name that we know." Nodoka added. "He mostly likely changed his given and family name by now, the same goes for Ranma. And as far we know Benji can also be a fake name, check for pictures for travelers of his age, height, hair color and eye, we know for sure that he is a brunette, so in his real papers or fake ones the hair will be black and the eyes brown."

Once again Nabiki nodded in silence. It was another possibility that she gave order to be checked but wasn't holding much of hope on it. "Now to another subject." Nodoka said. "I heard that a group of thieves are attacking some of my companies lately, what is being done about it?"

"We are investigating it." Nabiki answered. "We assume that there is at least four thieves, they are highly skilled, they tamper the security system and later remove the evidence of their alterations to such a level that we can't detect that it was tampered in the first place. Motion sensors don't register them, heat too, lasers and cameras, the only thing that detected them once was pressure sensor but it was malfunctioning and didn't set the alarm."

Nodoka sighed. "What was stolen?" She asked. "That is the odd part." Nabiki replied. "We didn't found a single missing item, even the money in the treasury for the employees payment was there, well a smartass employee tried to steal some to blain the thieves but was discovered."

"Any property damage?" Nodoka asked confused, why thieves would enter in their companies and not steal anything. "Now that there was plenty." Nabiki answered. "The computers were utterly destroyed in explosions, all the information on them was lost, financial data, client list, everything. There was also structural damage to the buildings, explosions on main pillars that weakened the building; the repairs will cost hundred of thousands solely for that."

"What about the safes?" Nodoka asked. "Were opened, not the so called public safe, but the hidden ones, the ones in the underground level." Nabiki answered in a plain tone. "The ones with the illegal goods." Nodoka winced, now the truth was coming forward. "What we lost?" She asked worried.

"A total of two and a half millions in weapons, explosives, ammunition, armor and military personal equipment, untraceable money, stones and metals, bearer bonds." Nabiki answered seriously. "Hidden mainframes and information, and lastly the acquired abomination artifacts that we gathered in the past three years."

Nodoka's heart rate and pulse quickens with the information. "I can live without everything other than the lost artifacts, what are you doing to recover them and find the thieves?" Nodoka asked, her digital voice not having the dangerous edge that it should be.

"I am doing everything that I can, but we can't just say to the police that we lost millions in illegal weapons, money and precious stones." Nabiki answered. "Our investigation unit is working all time for evidences and information about who might be the thieves. But there isn't any new face in the underworld or anyone that is bragging about stealing things and flaunting large amounts of money. Clearly we are dealing with professionals who know their turf and know when and how to act after the robbery."

Nodoka remained in silence as the machines make noises as her pressure rises. "No new Ferraris were bought, no new Lamborghinis, Mercedes or BMW, well Mercedes and BMWs were bought by the usual group of politicians and businessmen nothing worth of notice. No one bought a condo or an entire building, the thieves are lying low even with the fortunes that they made."

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"Let's admit I am a cruel and cold bastard." Benji said to the figure crouched next to him. "Cold yes, cruel and bastard I don't think so." The figure replied. "I would never imagine that you lied to her when she tried to get you drunk and that you would give her bugged diamond earrings. I taught you way too well."

"That you did but I was already suspicious of Nabiki when she said that we shouldn't come open." Benji said to Shiaki. "It felt odd that Nabiki who was so calculated and cold would become so passionate in the bedroom. Given her past in blackmailing and other illicit actions I felt that I might need to have her covered not only for my sake."

"You recorded her conversations in case that she needed the information in the future." Shiaki commented. "Still it isn't all that nice." "I never said that was right." Benji replied. "But in the end this favors me, I was too right in guessed that Nabiki wouldn't take those even to bath. Speak about diamonds being the woman's best friend."

Shiaki chuckled. "You know her far better than she knows you." She commented casually. "But you are sure that you want go ahead with this tonight? It sounds that they reinforced the security a lot."

"And that is why I send the notice to the office in the other district." Benji answered with a smile. "This one isn't under the main guard, we can easily act here." "Well you have a point." Shiaki commented standing up and stretching. "I am happy in having chances to use my skills, even being crimes."

"These aren't crimes." Benji replied. "It is tactical damage to their supplies, it is different. And I am stocking supplies because I might need them in the future. I just have one complain." "Don't get started on the black spandex again." Shiaki complained. "It is the shozoko of the future, doesn't get in the way of movement, doesn't leave fibers, it is comfortable and easy to wash. I went out of my way to get us these, they are fire, shock, stabs and cut proof, they can even hold bullets of small calibers, and they are also thermally shielded. Be happy that your nice teacher gave you such nice shozoko."

Benji's sour face is hidden by the black mask that he is wearing; both him and Shiaki are wearing full catsuits with masks covering their faces and transparent goggles over their uncovered eyes.

"I feel like Spider-man……" Benji muttered annoyed, while functional Benji really didn't liked the suits, the light armored parts of the shoulders, chest and other joints were okay but Benji liked something less formfitting than that, at least on him, but that outfit stretched even when he changed to his war form so he had to accept it. Shiaki also doesn't budge on them.

"How angry you think that they will be when they learn about tonight?" Shiaki asked casually. Benji grinned under his mask. "Nodoka will pop a vein." Benji answered amused. "Should we do it now or later?" "No better time than the present." Shiaki answered pressing a button from a small control. "Five minutes before the blast we should leave now."


	5. Changing people

Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic. This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Love Hina I don't own or any of the characters of those shows. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed: Benji Himura.

This story begins in the Ranmaverse somewhere in the middle of the events of the chapter thirteen, actually between the release of Hinako and the events of the Gamble King events.

In the Love Hina timeline in the manga it stars after the chapter twenty six but before the chapter twenty seven.

This is a crossover so both stories casts or at least part of them will interact and there will be changes on both stories and on the plotline of Outcast Ranma. For anyone following the main story this scenario doesn't follow the same 'timeline' from the main story, it works on the line that timeline show on the story is the original one.

"Text" Talked sentences.

'Text' Thoughts.

-Text- Sounds effects.

(Text) Talked sentences in a foreign language as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

**Text**: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

_Text_: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

"_Text"_ Alteration in the voice, not in the tone but the voice itself.

Chapter five: Changing people

"What is going on?" Ranko asked seeing Keitaro wearing a suit. "Someone died?" "Why someone had to die to me wear a suit?!" Keitaro exclaimed. "It is the only scenario that I can think that would require you wearing a black suit." Ranko replied flatly.

"She does a have a point there." Kitsune commented. "Why you are all dressed up?" "I am going to look for a half period job." Keitaro answered. "In a multi-national?" Naru asked flatly. "You are the manager here why you need another job?" Motoko asked. "Because certain people used my entire savings to go to Okinawa." Keitaro deadpanned. Making Motoko and Shinobu get embarrassed while Kaolla laughed.

Benji watched the entire thing with not much of interest, but he snorted seeing Keitaro trying to look cool and falling on a bucket and a broom. Benji stretches and yawns. "Don't you get tired of sleeping all the time?" Naru asked to the wolf. Benji almost said on loud. 'And you don't get tired of being bitchy all the time?'

Benji responds only with a dirty look and leaves the room. "I so hate that thing!" Naru exclaimed angrily. "He is throwing me dirty looks!" "Naru it is just a dog it doesn't throw dirty looks!" Kitsune tried to calm her hair trigger friend. Ranko sighed and finishes her breakfast. "I am going out to a club meeting." She said to the others. "I might come back with some cookies later."

"Have a nice day." Shinobu replied. Ranko nods while getting her things and leaving. "Well I will train a little." Motoko commented moving to the outside terrace, with that everyone move to do their daily stuff. Benji leaves the pension grounds and changes to human form before reaching the street.

"Time to check up on things." Benji muttered; it was part of his routine to learn more about the magical society, Nodoka's organization and trying to get more weapons to defend himself. He was happy that Ranko was adjusting to a normal lifestyle after leaving Nerima and thanks to their presence there the Hinata-sou is a little less crazy.

Mizuki's report didn't reveal anything significant; visiting Eri gave to Benji some more information about the underworld, both magical and common. Shiaki knew a lot but Eri's knowledge was much wider. Looking at the sky Benji decides to return to the pension before the rain starts.

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Benji yawned on his spot on the living room. "He sleeps too much." Naru commented dryly. "He is a wolf he is also very active at night." Ranko replied casually. "He gets out during the night for some walks."

"I am leaving for work." Keitaro said passing by the living room. "You are going to work for the father of that brat?" Ranko asked recalling Sarah's visit few days earlier. "I have to make money for my personal expenses." Keitaro answered with a long sigh, Sarah was a major pain but Seta was completely oblivious towards her destructive and aggressive behavior.

Naru glared at Keitaro, she was still mad at him for being working instead of studying. "You two aren't going to school today?" Kitsune asked to Ranko and Motoko. "It is teachers' council day, so we don't have classes today." Ranko answered. "And why those sport clothes?" Naru asked since Ranko is wearing black and green running shorts and shirt, both clinging on her generous curves.

"I am planning on jogging and later exercising." Ranko answered, she kept a strict and secret training regimen with Benji during their routine, but she wanted to train some more now that she has extra free time. "This nice figure doesn't come out from lazing out all day long like Kitsune does."

Kitsune feels the barb at her looks. "I don't lazy out all day long." She protested. "You just do it 24/7/30." Naru replied rubbing salt on her friend's wounds. "You do seem to be getting some extra flab on your waist." Ranko slipped out of there not wanting to be caught on the argument.

Benji does the same thing, moving to another place to find a quiet spot to sleep. Motoko follows the wolf since she is also heading to the balcony. Kitsune's shouts and Naru's cries are heard as the two friends deal with their argument. Benji watched Motoko training for a while.

The teen was cutting leaves in the air, Benji yawns again feeling the build up tiredness from his nocturnal escapades. 'I really should be a werecat…' Benji idly thought. His sleepiness goes away when he feels an unfamiliar presence moving closer. Quietly moving away Benji leave the balcony and runs to the cascade on the back of the pension.

Benji knew the area as the back of his hand, having much more free time than Ranko Benji explored the surroundings learning every hiding spot, trail and opening, it was his terrain. In his human form Benji easily moves on the tree branches in total silence, he stops in the edge of the clearing the leading to the cascade.

The wind rustles the leaves and the droplets of water from the fall keep the area cool and fresh. Benji spots the offender, she looked familiar; Benji didn't saw many girls with blue hair on his stay there. The girl was wearing simple shorts, a t-shirt and sweat shirt over it. Only by her scent Benji could tell that was a girl there because she looked like a boy.

'The girl that was running after that towel in Ranko's first day on Motoko's school!' Benji recalled where he saw that shade of hair before. 'But what is she doing here?' In his hiding spot Benji observed the girl; she takes away her clothes and folds them placing them over a rock with her upturned shoes over it to prevent the wind from blowing it away.

'Clearly she is still developing.' Benji mused seeing her not so small breasts and the developing curves of her body, her nakedness wasn't an issue for Benji, but he wondered why she striped there. His unspoken question was answered when she jumps on the cascade and dives with out much of a splash or noise, almost like a fish or a bird diving on the water.

'I guess that I made too much of a big deal of her.' Benji concluded. He was about to leave when the girl emerges shaking her wet hair sending droplets of water on the air, Benji stared at the girl as her ears changed to something similar to fins.

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Ranko continued to run on a fast but not unnatural speed, she was enjoying the pleasant ache of her muscles as she run around, it has been one hour since she started but she wasn't feeling tired, she could keep going for a long while. Spotting a vending machine Ranko runs towards it, taking few coins from her belt pack. "Tangerine…tangerine…" she murmured looking around the selection of sports drinks available on the machine. "Here!"

Inserting the coins on the machine she buys the drink, downing it with ease Ranko let out a sigh of pleasure. "That felt good." She commented throwing the empty can on the trash, she selects a different song from her MP3 player and continues to run. That uneventful life was just what she wanted.

No fiancées wars, no crazy rivals popping out from nowhere, no father related problems that she had to solve, no so called honor bound promises, and no problems, her most troublesome decision was what she was going to wear to go out with her new friends or what to buy in the stores that they go together.

'Peace, I can't believe that I lived this long without this…' Ranko thought keeping her fast stride, after one and a half month staying solely as female with just few minutes of male changes during the day Ranko had accepted the curse and her cursed form, she even started to dress more femininely, sure in the beginning Benji had almost to subdue her to make her put on panties, well Ranko was just acting as a spoilt child and if she truly wanted Benji wouldn't be able to subdue her. Ranko can still remember those two weeks that they were wandering around and how he acted.

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"I am not getting in there!" Ranko said hugging a pillar. "There is the lingerie section of a department's store. "Fine." Benji replied as if he doesn't care. "I just pick up a handful of panties of your size."

With those words said Benji walks to the lingerie section without a hint of shame or embarrassment. His tall figure is easily noticed by the other clients, mostly young women and teens, even some older ones. Benji smiled at them and started to check the available panties held in racks.

"May I help you?" A female attendant asked cordially to Benji. "I am looking for some panties for my younger sister." Benji answered. "Well not only panties but bras, slips and something that she can use when sleeping. Teens grow too fast and she outgrew everything that she had."

The attendant laughed softly. "Which size you need?" she asked. "For panties M, now for bras I don't really know how to measure size of them." Benji answered. "But she is quite well endowed." "Selecting bras is difficult, without the proper size is nearly impossible to find a comfortable one." She replied seriously. "The cups might be too tight and hurt." Benji commented understanding; he had a girlfriend before ending there while not liking shopping he was voluntaried to go with her to hold bags and for male opinions.

"Why you are so careless in standing here?!" Ranko asked to Benji, she looks straight towards him since everywhere else that she looks if covered with multi-colored lace, cotton, satin and other panties. "As if I would get embarrassed in the middle of panties." Benji replied casually. "As far as I care is the same thing than buying myself briefs and boxers."

"You seem to have quite much experience buying clothes." The attendant commented. Benji ruffles Ranko's orange hair. "When you are raising a firecracker sister you tend to do all the shopping." He replied casually. "Now that she is here mind in checking whatever size she needs for bras?"

"Not at all." She said with a smile dragging Ranko to the changing area. Benji chuckled as Ranko protests, taking another hanger from the racks Benji check the displayed panties, he throws it on the shopping cart that he was pushing and picks four more of the same style and color, white cotton panties is basic after all.

A couple minutes later a very embarrassed Ranko marches at his direction. "You will so get it!" She exclaimed with her arms crossed over her shirt protecting her breasts. "Your sister should feel comfortable with an M size bra." The attendant said to Benji. "We have a wide collection of that size."

"Thank you." Benji replied with a smile. The attendant excuses herself since another client calls her. "Now Ranko pick up some colorful ones." Benji instructed. "It will be odd to a girl just having a handful of panties, especially plain white ones." Ranko muttered something and started to check on the goods.

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What started with her unwillingly buying things that would suit her cover ended with her starting to wear and buy it on her own, once she got used to them they weren't as scary as she first thought. Benji would often tease her about sexy lingerie, Ranko never got anything skimpy but was starting to buy based on looks of them the selection was much broader than of male undies.

Ranko stops running in front of a store where the vendor was watching TV, the news were speaking about a series of robberies in private buildings; Ranko would normally ignore that but somehow that caught her eyes. "The police don't have any leads on the identities and number of burglars." The female reporter said in front of one of the buildings that were robbed. "They only say that they are highly skilled able to avoid cutting edge surveillance systems and alarms…"

Ranko puts the earplugs back on and resumes running, it wasn't her problem if some greedy companies were robbed. Ranko arrives in the Hinata-sou covered in a thin sheet of sweat. "I am back!" Ranko called taking out her running shoes and trotting to her room. "Welcome back." Kitsune shouted from her room. "You should take a bath, you are sweaty."

"Later." Ranko replied. "I am still going to exercise." She hops her way upstairs and to her room. "Benji?" Ranko called not finding the wolf anywhere there. Sighing Ranko pulls a duffel bag from her closet and runs to the back of the pension, putting her sneakers back on she straps some weights on her wrists, ankles and holds a pair of heavy hand weights before starting to practice one basic routine of her style.

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Benji was in one of the rare visits on the pension on his human form, but he was unfortunate to have picked the same day that Seta decided to visit. "You know I am seriously starting to doubt the wisdom of moving here." Ranko said to Benji while seeing Motoko and Kitsune nearly breaking Seta's and Naru's neck to prevent them of looking at the other. "A tad little more force…"

Benji nodded agreeing, he snapped more than a handful of necks on the day of their escape and even more later on. "Should we interfere on this?" Ranko asked looking up to her brother/pet. "No." Benji replied casually. "We are going out for some ice cream." Benji said to the busy girls who barely acknowledge them.

Wearing denim trousers and a black top Ranko leaves with Benji who are wearing black trousers, white t-shirt and a light black jacket over it. Walking down the long stairway in silence Ranko looks at Benji. "You are different." She said in a light tone. "I can't just put my finger but something on you is different."

"Maybe is all the time as wolf." Benji replied, while he was around seventy percent of his time as wolf he wasn't expending as much time cursed as Ranko is. "You also changed." "Well this whole new life is good." Ranko said looking at the distant houses far from there from the stair. "I hardly have worries now, everyone in school is nice, and I made few friends."

"That is good to hear." Benji commented with a smile. "Benji what you are doing when you leave at night and when you aren't in the pension?" Ranko asked seriously. "Don't lie to me because I can tell, you come home sometimes smelling at something that I don't know or like and other times you smell like blood and sweat."

Benji remained in silence how to explain to Ranko what he was doing; it was unbelievable even for him who was living it for someone else it would be enough cause to send him to the closest psychiatric ward. Ranko waited in silence since she can tell that Benji is thinking, they pass by Haruka's tea shop and continue walking.

They move to a park, there were couples walking around, kids playing, birds flying; shortly it was a perfectly normal and quiet day of spring. Benji felt like he wasn't part of that world, yet Ranko looked at him from there trying to keep him on that world. They sit in a shade of a tree, far from the others.

"It is related to mother isn't it?" Ranko asked seriously. "You are still keeping your guard up and ready to face her again, right?" Benji nodded confirming it was part of the truth. "She is still alive." Benji said looking at the orange haired girl. "I don't know their condition but Nodoka, Nabiki and Kasumi survived the blast."

Ranko looks at him worriedly. "We hardly know anything about that organization." Benji continued. "I am trying to find more about them." "So you go out and break in buildings to steal from them?" Ranko asked seriously. "I saw the news; I also know that you can do it since you made our documents and identities."

"Those buildings are related." Benji answered. "They are connected to each other by an organization; I am trying to identify that organization." "And what about me? Why you leave me out of this?" Ranko asked worried. "I am stronger, faster and more skilled in combat than you are."

"Because unlike me you aren't deprived of morals." Benji answered with a smile. "I kill and I don't care, I maul and don't give a damn about it, I am beast in human form. You are still human, you can have a closer to normal life, and you said yourself that you like of this life. You have made friends, living a life close of one of an average girl."

"But I am not a girl!" Ranko exclaimed. "I was born and raised male!" "Compare your life before Nodoka's hunting us to your life after it." Benji said calmly. "Which one you like best?" Ranko's jaw snapped shut, sure she enjoyed her life before they were hunt, the period where Benji entered on her life was clearly the best, her childhood was at the very least horrible, being sold for a mere dinner by her father, trapped in pits filled with cats and the abusive torture that he called training.

After moving to Nerima things were a bit better, sure the curse ruined lots of things, her own education and actions ruined some more, then Benji arrived a total stranger who didn't wanted anything other than being friends with her and trying to help her with her problems, and had success with many of them.

Sure Benji slept with her mother, but it was to make her more open to the curse and less stressed about everything, and worked wonders in the beginning. Then there was the day of the escape, Nodoka suddenly wanted them subdued and restrained to be used to some kind of experiment.

No reasons were given and none were asked, Ranko was too surprised to wonder why and Benji was too focused in killing them to care. Afterwards Benji took care of her, was there when she needed and comforted her when she cried during the night, he treated her as a girl and a sister, teasing and provoking but at the same time caring and loving, protecting her from whatever he could.

He was there and explained what was happening to her during her period, which scared the life out of her, Benji explained with patience and calm, slowly calming her, she never really asked him why he carried a pack of sanitary pads on his hidden space, she guessed that it was for her when she needed, as if he had foreseen her waking in the middle of the night shrieking in fright, it was a good thing that everyone else was too drunk because the hanami to wake with her screams.

Sure seeing other physical evidence that her body was truly female would have freaked her out three weeks earlier, but when it came she just accepted with mild disgust and curiosity. Ranko wondered when she started to think about herself as female with such casualty and ease, and thought if someone called her Ranma if she would turn back and reply or she would think that wasn't with her.

Her arrival in the Hinata-sou led to an eventful life, but not as bad as the one that he had before, as the others she was victim of Keitaro's clumsiness a handful of times, but instead of bashing him to LEO Ranko severely scolded him about his lack of attention to the surroundings and how dangerous it was to flail when falling, that instead of trying to prevent the fall he should learn how to fall in the right way to not hurt himself or a possible someone caught in his fall.

Oddly enough Keitaro didn't fell on her as many times after those as he did with Naru, Motoko and Shinobu. Ranko felt that maybe the girls are trying to get rid of his habit in the wrong way, but since they didn't take her words of advice Ranko stopped giving them.

Her relation with Motoko was good, they got along fine and Ranko often sparred with her, of course holding back on her mad skill, it was good to train with someone who doesn't want to rip her a new one for a change. She also got along well with Shinobu, Ranko learned and traded several recipes with Shinobu and often show to Shinobu her flashy style of cooking.

She kept a distant relation with Naru, Ranko couldn't like of the bitchy girl, she was as bad if not worse than Akane, shouting of how she doesn't want to be with Keitaro but getting angry and jealous when he gives attention to another girl, her habit of hitting Keitaro at a flick of a hat for even the most minor things was what made Ranko not get along with Naru.

She had her share of that kind of abuse in the past, Ranko's feelings were reciprocate since Ranko often offered to Keitaro advices and gave him a friendly shoulder to cry when he needed to, just the fact that Ranko wouldn't distort or use the confidences against his made Keitaro more friendly towards her, which made Naru angry and jealous.

Ranko doesn't see Keitaro as anything other than an annoying friend, the type that you can't leave alone because he is so helpless edging being pathetic, Keitaro's habit of despairing and giving up on things just because he thinks that he can't do it was more than enough to Ranko hold him on a low regard.

Her relation with Kitsune was okay, the older woman was friendly but was a bit slouch for her liking, and Kitsune was what Ranko called an example to not be followed. Seeing Kitsune getting sick of drinking too much, falling drunk at corners and halls, smelling like old liquor and cigarette smoke, losing sizable sums of money on gambling was more than enough to make Ranko study hard to not end like her.

She could only imagine what some men might do with Kitsune while she was knocked out drunk. It gave Ranko nightmares when she asked to Benji what he thought that happens to Kitsune when she is too wasted to return home and spend the night somewhere on the street, from then on liquor for Ranko was just for occasions that would be too rude to decline and she would drink only a little, a oath to herself to never get as wasted as Kitsune and become playgrounds to any male that felt like using her.

Ranko was trying to make Kitsune drink less but it would be easier teach Shinobu to be stripper and do a lap dance on Keitaro than making Kitsune lower her drinking rate. Lastly there was Kaolla, Ranko got along well with her, and she kept some distance of the crazy girl, not wanting to be victim of her crazy experiments and inventions. Kaolla was nice but she was too naïve and crazy for her own good; Ranko preferred to keep her in at least arm's length if not further apart than that.

Going to school what she first thought of being a pain actually became something that she looked forward to, being part of the cooking club not only gave her friends but gave her extra food and chances to learn how to make new things, she felt good making something instead of breaking things for a change.

But that part of her life wasn't from Ranma Saotome, it belonged to Ranko Tachibana, a slightly tomboyish athletic girl, recalling everything she saw that she had become everything that she said that Akane wasn't; she was cute, feminine, gentle and kind. She quickly made friends with other girls and was treated as any other girl, at some point she stopped thinking on herself as a boy pretending to be a girl and started to think about herself as a girl.

A girl with particular issues that needed extra privacy than the others but still a girl, she was part of the swimming classes and the volley classes on the physical education classes, as well the other classes, she used the same restroom than the others, ate with the others and was indeed happy with her current life.

Benji was always around or available to talk by phone if not near her, but Ranko wasn't as dependant of his closeness all the time as she was in the past, she still loves using Benji's wolf form as plushie but during the day they were mostly doing their own business.

"I like best my current life." Ranko admitted softly. "Then let me worry about Nodoka and everything related to that." Benji said gently wrapping her shoulders with his arms. "You live this life and let me to whatever I can to protect it." "Why I can't protect it myself?" Ranko asked. "Why you can't have a closer to normal life as human too? Why you have to hide as a wolf and fight against my mother?"

"When this issue with Nodoka is over I will be able to live a normal life too." Benji replied comforting Ranko. "I am not sure that I will be living in the Hinata-sou but if I am not there I will be near." "It isn't fair; I live a normal life while you suffer with that fate." Ranko murmured crying, her time living as a mostly normal girl made easier to Ranko express her feelings.

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Benji watched in silence as Kitsune was holding another meeting with everyone other than Naru and Keitaro. "We have successfully avoided an encounter between Naru and Seta that should keep Keitaro alive."

"I fail to see why doing that would keep Keitaro alive." Ranko spoke what Benji wanted to voice. "So what if Keitaro has a crush on that violent woman? He can get over it, actually I think that would be healthier for him to get over his infatuation towards Naru and look for a nicer girl. A trigger happy girl that hits him first and don't ask for explanations later isn't something that males find attractive unless he has a masochist streak."

"Considering everything he might have." Motoko commented. "Based on the rate of falling on us he constantly falls over me and Naru-senpai while on you who doesn't hit him when those so called accidents happen he hardly falls over you."

"Which bring me to a theory that I raised." Ranko replied. "I think that responding violently is having a negative effect, imagine the kind of internal trauma that he must be getting on your constants so called 'righteous punishment', how you want him to learn to not do something if he might be getting brain damage every time that you do that, and also people tend to block out painful memories another reason to not hit him, if he can remember his mistakes he might not do them again, this whole Pavlov's dog pain treatment of yours isn't helping at all."

'Where did that Pavlov thing came from?' Ranko added on her mind. 'Damn you Benji I am now starting to turn into a geek!' Benji sneezes startling the girls, he rubs his nose with his paws while Kitsune looked at Ranko. "It is written somewhere that if you don't learn from love you learn from pain." Motoko said seriously.

"And the pain leaning had given any fruits?" Ranko asked sweetly. The silence from Motoko and the others is enough answer to the now smiling orange haired girl. "Ranko-san is right, maybe if senpai doesn't get beaten up so badly he won't feel so depressed." Shinobu said jumping on the train that Ranko started. "Not to mention that if the damage to the pension lessens there will be more money to other needed renovations."

Kitsune and Motoko remain in silence while Kaolla remains clueless. "And poking your nose in other people's business isn't good either." Ranko added. "What if Naru-san saw that Seta-san guy she would get over her old high school crush? And if she only gets more infatuated there isn't any evidence that Keitaro would kill himself just because of her." With a snort Ranko added. "In his place I would be happy in realizing that I didn't belong to an abusive, violent and hypocrite woman who thinks that she is too good for men."

"When you put things like that…" Motoko commented taken back by Ranko's words, it was like that how Naru was seen by others, people with a more normal view of life and social concepts. "Perhaps I have been wrong too." Motoko said embarrassed, she isn't fond of admitting her mistakes but she knows that admitting her flaws was the initial step for overcoming them. "But I have been abusing my skills, while a scum of a man the manager is weaker and using my sword skills on him is wrong."

'Okay that is some really brutal change.' Benji thought surprise. 'Why I have the feeling that something bad will going to happen sometime soon?' Kitsune stared at Motoko in a shocked awe, sure Motoko was right in everything that she said and so was Ranko but that admission as well the change of acting will severely cut her source of fun and amusement.

"You are too new here to opine in such matters." Kitsune said in a shaking, it was a weak argument but was the only one that she could find. "Sure I am here for less than two months but he is here for less than seven months before I arrived here." Ranko replied. "And if things haven't improved as it was is more than about time to new approaches and point of views."

"Ranko-san is right." Motoko commented. "As in a battle if something doesn't work you have to try something else new." 'Okay that feeling got even worse now.' Benji swallowed uncomfortable. 'Something grievous is going to happen soon really soon.' And soon Benji's fears would be proven right.

End of the chapter five:

Author explanation corner:

Ranko's period: It is one of the many theories about onna Ranma, it says that if Ranma stays female long enough her body would pass by the same physiological cycle as any other woman would, after all for all means Ranma's body is entirely female, that includes all the reproductive organs and hormones, therefore menstruation.

This also leads to pregnant Ranma debate, following this line of thought that Ranma possesses everything that a regular woman possesses (it wasn't proved otherwise in official media), it is likely that Ranma can get pregnant and give birth if she remains for nine months on her cursed form, proven fact based on the Musk dynasty history and the Phoenix people, both 'races' are hybrids of cursed people, the Musk is the stronger evidence of the ability of a cursed to be woman person or animal to give birth if kept in female form.

Ranma/Ranko's new mentality: I forgot where I red it but it said that the mind adapts itself to the body, based on that theory by staying female on most of his time, acting, thinking, behaving and speaking as a girl Ranma would eventually psychologically turn into a girl. Of course I might be wrong on this line of thought; I don't have a psychology degree, but for the sake of entertainment and the story let's pretend that in the case that I am wrong that I am not wrong. And of course that also affects Benji and I quote from this chapter: **"**Because unlike me you aren't deprived of morals. I kill and I don't care, I maul and don't give a damn about it, I am beast in human form.**"** That is the curse affecting Benji.

As I said in the past the springs automatically give to the cursed person or animal the needed knowledge to handle and operate the new form, once again calling the Musk, remember how the monkey turned into girl acted like a monkey even as a girl, while the monkey knew how to use the human body it didn't knew how to speak and most likely doesn't know how to use human made utensils.

Mousse knows how to fly and swim as a duck, Shampoo knows how to run, jump, climb and act as a cat, same goes to Genma as a panda, Taro as the winged beast and Benji as a werewolf and his other forms, it also works with Ranma adapting immediately to different balance center just after he was first cursed, remember how she beated and chased Genma?

Last important factor is the new environment, even with Motoko in there the school is just a regular all girls school, no crazy principal, insane teachers, mad mobbing students, disillusioned martial artists or unusual neighbors. It is a regular school with the usual nerds, jocks, bullies, petty drug dealers, and everything else that happens in a regular school so let's face that even in a stuck up school there has to be at least one of each of those before mentioned types.

Other than regular daily life school problems nothing out of ordinary happens there, even Motoko clearly hold back on her sword skill when training with her club mates. It is a calm and peaceful environment that everyone takes for granted, and for Ranma it is a revelation in seeing the 'normal' lifestyle of a student and seeing things in the 'normal' point of view.

Ranko's theory and how it affects the others: As said in the story it is the point of view of an outsider, let's forget all that we know about Love Hina and Ranma ½, seeing Keitaro taking that kind of abuse day in and day out who would call that normal and common? Or Kitsune's predictions of how Keitaro would suicide because Naru got even more infatuated towards Seta.

It is pushing things a bit too far and unrealistic, sure Keitaro is a wimp that with a single obstacle gets depressed and gives up, but with some outside help and support (naming Ranko) he wouldn't react as Kitsune predicts that he would, after all what grounds she has to say that? She hardly knows Keitaro, and how he would react on specific situations.

Shinobu is a kind girl; we all know that, so it is natural that she would side with Ranko who is trying to save Keitaro from daily beatings, we all see how she cries his name when Keitaro is send to the outer space.

Motoko is a smart girl, sure a bit odd and with her own distorted sense of honor (I blain her sister for that, who on her right mind would set such unrealistic things for her sister), but giving her a different perspective and depth she would see that she wasn't acting honorably, using her sword to bash Keitaro to LEO is abusing her skills, using her skills to save Shinobu from yakuza isn't.

LEO: it means Low Earth Orbit; that is for anyone who doesn't know that.

Ranko's lingerie shopping: I have no idea of onna Ranma's bust size; no idea of her bra size and absolutely no idea of how in the world women select their bra size. Anyway I tried to give Ranko big but not monstrously large breasts, and her size is on the Japanese measuring system, at least I think that it is on there. In the overall Ranko's body is quite petite and small, sure she has lots of breast and hip but she is still a small girl in terms of height and weight which would make her appear bigger than she is.

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Extra scenes:

"I really hate reporters." Benji muttered turning off the television. "Come on Benji it isn't all that bad." Shiaki teased, she was content that the cops think that they are a big group of criminals. "And we know that Nodoka had a heart attack because of our last four raids."

Benji is torn between sighing and smiling. "We are getting too bold." Benji commented. "Nodoka and Nabiki aren't stupid they are going to figure that I am the one behind this sooner or later. The illusion that I am overseas won't last forever." "True enough." Shiaki said resting her chin on the back of her hands. "So what next raping and torturing them? I got this new strap on for torture that it should be painful, I really want to try it out."

"I really feel like ripping your intestines from you by your nostrils right now." Benji hissed with a dangerous edge on his voice. "That is one that I will write down for later use." Shiaki commented pulling a PDA from her pocket. "Ripping intestines by nostrils…"

Benji sighed and wondered by the umpteenth time in that particular meeting of why he had contacted Shiaki to help him on stealing from Nabiki and Nodoka. "I will place it right under filleting a human being alive." Shiaki commented cheerfully. "So many techniques and so little opportunities to use them, you know that in all these years I only have fifty seven chances of using unusual pain inflicting killing techniques? What is the good of having seven hundred thousand ways of inflicting death when you can't try them all?"

"……and I am supposed to be the blood thirst beast of us……" Benji muttered wondering why he can't kill his former sensei with his stare. "You are just clinging to practical ways." Shiaki commented. "But after two hundred years you kind of get annoyed of neat and clean killings. What about we go track down some criminals and try something new on them? I bought this new stun baton and I have really mean ideas of how using it."

"I really should do something about you and internet access." Benji spat acidly. "But it is so practical!" Shiaki commented. "I even ordered a Korean maid last week, she is due to next week. This place can get really filthy sometimes, well I admit that I am the one to blain but I hate cleaning up after my parties."

'Well it does explain the four dozens of thongs hanging on the chandelier……' Benji thought dryly. "So other than lesbian orgies what else you do when not trying to kill anything that is alive?" Benji asked curious. "It is bisexual ones, after one hundred years of bad straight sex a girl has the right to try out new things." Shiaki corrected. "At least now days you males are getting more skillful in bed. Anyway I don't go in killing sprees that often; I killed less people in this century than you on this last year."

"Well I did kill a lot this year." Benji muttered. "Wait a second there! You are keeping tabs on how many people I killed?" "Yup!" Shiaki answered cheerfully. "Mou you are too lucky……two hundred and seventy eight people, that not counting the boy before you started training with me."

"I killed that much?" Benji asked in a mixture of awe and disgust. "Most of them only in the past semester." Shiaki answered cheerfully. "You are a rather good killing machine and as your teacher I am proud, all that you need is to be set in a place and before we can say go you are already on the enemy in a whirlwind of claws and death."

"If I had morals I would be really sick now." Benji commented dryly, true he killed a lot when raiding the buildings of Nodoka's organization, but he never stopped to count, after all he was just removing obstacles, and it was as natural for him to kill as it was for a wolf to kill something for food.

"Come on bi-sexual orgies aren't all that bad." Shiaki commented. "I MEAN THE KILLING!" Benji shouted angrily. "But it would be interesting adding something new, Midori was commenting on seeing some bestiality pics in the net." Shiaki commented. "What about you joining us next Saturday?" Shiaki asked casually. "I am sure that the girls will love the idea of you in your war form in the party."

Benji had to admit that the idea was temptating. "I am not joining." Benji said flatly, he definitely regretted knowing his teacher that much; he is on the verge of regretting calling her after the escape from Nerima. '……my mental image of her is ruined……'

"Come on it will be fun." Shiaki pleaded. "Just you and twenty six hot women craving for sex." "I am not sure that I can handle that much." Benji said in a flat tone, it was a lie, he knew that he could handle them, as a werewolf and martial artist his stamina were over the roof, Nabiki could testify to that, but Benji would give in to Shiaki, at least not in that, besides he had better plans for his Saturday than a marathon of sex with Shiaki and whatever sex friends as she calls them, revenge comes first and Ranko had something coming for her.

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Nabiki sighed tiredly, thanks to Nodoka's unstable condition Nabiki was spared of another scolding for failing in locating Benji, Ranma and Ryoga. "I so hate this damned thing!" Nabiki exclaimed grabbing a ruler and scratching her left ankle with a fierce determination and strength.

"You will hurt yourself like that." Sakura one of Nabiki's closest minions said to the ice queen. "This accursed implant is itching like crazy!" Nabiki complained, attached to her left leg is an artificial foot connected to the bone and attached to the flesh. "It means that it is being accepted, if you scratches like that it might infect." Sakura said taking a bottle of lotion from Nabiki's desk.

"I will rub some of this, it will ease the itch." Sakura announced while kneeling in front of Nabiki. Nabiki sighed. "Go on." Nabiki said throwing the ruler away. "Anyway how is the school?" "Normal, at least within the acceptable normality standards of the area." Sakura answered while rubbing on Nabiki's left calf and ankle some of the clear lotion.

"What about information? Anything on the targets?" Nabiki asked suppressing a sigh of relief at the cold feel of the lotion on her skin easing the itching. "None." Sakura answered not looking up to Nabiki. "They just vanished; there isn't a single sign of them anywhere in our reach."

Nabiki holds back the urge of kicking the girl to vent out her stress, it would give her some relief, but she knew better than killing the messenger; she wasn't really expecting anything from them, it was just so she could say that she was using everything that she has to search for them.

"This prosthesis is effective?" Sakura asked after several moments of uncomfortable silence. "Yeah." Nabiki replied, at least it wasn't about work; she could use a small break of it. "It uses the most advanced technology in cybernetics and robotics, in two years it will be released to the military as replacement of lost limbs, at least for legs. Hands are still too complex to be functional. This one should be just like my real foot, as long I don't drop a chest over it, it should last for ten years, of course I will have to maintain and have regular checkups since my body is still growing, but the socket won't need to be replaced, just the artificial foot."

"What about your eyes?" Sakura asked. "I don't really need them." Nabiki answered. "And if I need to see anything I can easily use my own skills, for technology I have a implant that allows me to see things straight from the computer. It wasn't much of a loss."

Sakura remained in silence; Nabiki hinted before but was the first time that she openly admitted not caring for losing her eyes. Nabiki kept the silence because she is more worried in how to capture the thieves that are raiding building after building of their organization, tracking devices were useless, more than once disabled and then removed and turned on in some random far off country.

Pairing both the continuous thefts and Benji's still unknown whereabouts made Nabiki very stressed and only a massive amount of medicines prevented her from getting an ulcer or worse side-effects, the four hours nights of sleep of the passing months also build on her.

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Benji looks down at the headless corpse bellow him, with blood running down between his teeth Benji remained on his crouched position on the building, with his strong fingers buried on the concrete of the edge adding more leverage to a normally impossible forward position with his other hand holding the hanging corpse on the air.

In full war form Benji looks at the building that Nabiki called of main operational quarters, hiding his presence was easy even like that, the victim a unlucky guard watching over the place, not much of a security expected to a person in high position in a secret organization.

But one human guard was enough when backed up by the most cutting edge technology in security systems. Benji was only able to see the nearly uncountable amount of lasers because as a werewolf he could see frequencies of light that normal humans can't, the same with sound, he could easily hear the constant sound of the ultrasonic motion sensors working.

He knew that Nabiki had more than just lasers, cameras and motion sensors, he was certain of thermal, weight, pressure and some odd biorhythm sensors and alarms all over the place, backed by bullet and blast proof windows, walls and doors.

Benji is unpleased at the taste of blood and brains on his mouth but he were a tab bit careless on the killing that time, but wasn't important, since after all he loaded the corpse with thirty four kilos of high plastic explosive, military demotion grade material; not enough to bomb the place down but it wasn't Benji's objective, at least not that night, he has other plans.

Benji stands up easily maneuvering the corpse, he suddenly throws the corpse as hard as he can at the window of the room where Nabiki is staying, the corpse impacts explosives first on the glass before the bomb goes off, if the corpse wasn't enough to trigger the alarms the explosion set everything else off.

Benji doesn't wait to see the results of his actions, he knew that the now paste of a corpse wouldn't hold traces of what killed him, the sudden attack would also make the whole organization nervous, edgy and suspicious of everyone and everything. Benji couldn't openly strike them yet but leading them to believe that he could would be beneficial for him so he would use another tactic that he liked but avoided using it.

Psychological warfare.


	6. Seeking information

Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic. This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Love Hina I don't own or any of the characters of those shows. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed: Benji Himura.

This story begins in the Ranmaverse somewhere in the middle of the events of the chapter thirteen, actually between the release of Hinako and the events of the Gamble King events.

In the Love Hina timeline in the manga it stars after the chapter twenty six but before the chapter twenty seven.

This is a crossover so both stories casts or at least part of them will interact and there will be changes on both stories and on the plotline of Outcast Ranma. For anyone following the main story this scenario doesn't follow the same 'timeline' from the main story, it works on the line that timeline show on the story is the original one.

"Text" Talked sentences.

'Text' Thoughts.

-Text- Sounds effects.

(Text) Talked sentences in a foreign language as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

**Text**: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

_Text_: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

"_Text"_ Alteration in the voice, not in the tone but the voice itself.

Chapter six: Seeking information

Shinobu shrieked as she sees one man flying over her head and Benji in his human form leaping over her head flying the other man with a bloodied dagger on his right hand. Motoko and Ranko runs out of the pension as Shinobu keeps her eyes shut not wanting to see whatever warm fluid fell over her as Benji passed over her.

Benji grabs the neck of the man while in midair and stabs him four times on the heart before they land on the stairs, the momentum is more than enough to shatter the bones of the man and the speed of the fall as well his body moving as a slide between Benji and the stone steps turn them into dust.

They stop in one of the level areas of the stairs. The man were dead before he hitted the ground, Benji pulls a pistol from the man's side and fires three times against a tree, a cry of pain precedes the fall of a man holding an assault rifle. Dripping warm water Benji slowly rises, sniffing the air Benji looks around trying to detect any other intruder.

"Don't move and drop your weapons." An unfamiliar feminine voice said pressing a cold barrel against the back of Benji's neck. "I can't believe on this, trained mercenaries, special mystical forces killed as amateurs." Benji releases his dagger and the pistol.

"Benji!" Ranko called from the top of the stairs, it is enough to Benji. Using the distraction of the woman Benji spins and slaps her armed hand away as she fires once, Benji slams the heel of his right hand against her chest; he spins once again and repeats the attack on the stunned woman, each time spinning and packing a momentum filled hit on her chest.

On the edge of the platform the woman staggers unbalanced nearly falling, flailing her arms in a desperate attempt of regain her balance she drops her pistol, Benji grabs her red tie and wraps it around his hand, she is literally hanging on her life by that tie since she is too leaned back to regain balance alone.

"There are any more of you here?" Benji asked quietly. "One more!" A man called running at Benji's direction with a shotgun. Benji smiled and pulls hard on the woman sending her against the man. As expected he drops the gun and holds the woman. Benji punches the woman hard on the back of her neck, she falls unconscious and Benji grabs the man's right hand and twist his hand and fingers nearly breaking them.

The man cries in pain as his joints are forced to its limits. Benji packs a front kick on the man's right knee shattering the joint and forcing the knee to bend in the wrong direction, the man falls over his knees unable to stand, Benji brings down the man's arm against his knee smashing the limb so hard that a thin mist of blood jets from the arm. Then Benji smashes his knee hard on the man's face.

Letting out a long breath Benji exhales, he couldn't feel any other presence on the area. Ranko stared in shock; she wasn't ever expecting to see such display of killing techniques and violence. Motoko was also shocked, true her own technique was created to kill, but to kill demons, and she never killed anything.

'Magic special forces, mercenaries…?' Benji thought checking on the intruders' clothes for information. 'What is going on here? Nodoka had located us? Or it is the magical underworld?' Benji was lucky that Kitsune was out drinking, Naru and Keitaro were out doing something related to their new attempt of getting on Todai, Kaolla was on an eating contest in a new restaurant, Shinobu haven't seen much, but there was Motoko, she saw nearly everything.

Ranko, Motoko and Benji were in the pension when Benji suddenly ran out of the living room, he were tackled on the hot spring by two intruders, they were quickly disposed but Benji was on his original form and without a damn good excuse for being there explaining to Motoko would be hard.

"Ranko how Shinobu is?" Benji asked to the girl. "She fainted." Ranko answered. "Good then this will be simpler." Benji commented. "Now that leaves you." Motoko was stunned, she doesn't know what Benji meant but her mind thought that Benji would kill her, she wanted to draw her sword but she was too scared to do so, he was letting out such a powerful sakki just moments earlier that she felt a similar fear that she feels from her sister.

"You are from a samurai family." Benji said seriously. "So this will be easier to accept." "Don't come near me!" Motoko shouted managing to draw her sword with her shaky hands, it was a total difference experience training and sparring with someone than having to fight for her life.

Benji snickered. "You have reasons to be scared of me." Benji said in a bitter tone. "But I won't harm you, these people are assassins. Most likely hired by mine and Ranko's mother, she is trying to kill us for unknown reasons, because the size of the group I think that they are just scouts and they don't know about our location."

"Assassins?" Motoko asked confused but relived in hearing that he wouldn't try silencing her. "I have to get rid of the corpses, dump them in another district or city so they won't discover that we are here." Benji replied. "I will come back within two hours, and then I will tell you everything."

Motoko nodded, two hours should be enough for her to get her courage back. Taking Shinobu to her room Motoko leaves, Ranko aids Benji to gather the corpses, it was surprising to see that no one responded to the shots, but then explosions was common in the Hinata-sou.

As promised a little over two hours later Benji, Ranko and Motoko were inside Ranko's room, Motoko lied to Shinobu telling that nothing happened, while Benji was away Ranko washed away all the signals of blood and battle from the area.

"Our mother, Nodoka wants us dead." Benji started. "We don't know why, but she doesn't waste efforts to achieve that goal. So we are running away from her, I don't know if it was luck or they knew our location but that group found us here and tried to kill us."

"And you killed them first." Motoko said in an emotionless tone, she was trying to keep herself level to this new development. "I was trained for that." Benji replied. "I am a ninja, killing and assassination skills are my fortes, my arts aren't focused on defense or disabling the opponent but killing the enemy in the quickest and most effective method available."

'Put quick and effective on that.' Motoko dryly commented on her mind. "And what about Ranko, she is a ninja and assassin too?" Motoko asked. "No." Benji answered. "She is the heir of the family, while she is a skilled martial artist she isn't a warrior or assassin, her style focuses on personal defense and defense of others. Actually it is similar in the core as your own style, since it also focuses on defeating demons and evil beings."

"Why I should remain silent about all this?" Motoko asked seriously, their presence while was welcomed by mostly everyone was now a menace. "Because even if we leave now if she knows that we lived here she will come here." Benji answered in the same way. "And she won't believe that you as well the others don't know out whereabouts. She is a cruel and sadistic woman; she would torture everyone just because she believes that there is a faint possibility that anyone might know where we went. It is safer for everyone if we stay here and fend off her attacks and protect the others."

Motoko remained in silence, while contradictory it was also truth, if that woman is as Benji said that is then having them around would benefit everyone, that if she knows if they are there, but betting on something is risky, in both cases. 'What my sister would do now?' Motoko asked confused. 'She would know what to do, how to react and wouldn't be frozen in fright as I was.'

"All that we want is to have normal lives." Benji said. "That is why Ranko is here, so she can have a normal life while I am on the shadows trying to work out a solution." Motoko bites her thumb nail, she felt like she was dropped in one of her samurai romances. In there Benji would be the loyal samurai defending his princess from the evil plots of an enemy warlord.

Part of her wanted to see what will happen but other part wanted to have nothing with it and have them away from the pension to not risk herself or the others. But as the heir of the Shinmei-ryu style she couldn't turn away from injustice and let petty feelings cloud her mind, as a samurai and a warrior it would be wrong to throw them away.

"I will agree in keeping this incident secret." Motoko said seriously. "However if something similar happens again this might come of knowledge of the others and if endangers them I will have to ask you to leave this place."

"Fair enough." Benji replied in the same tone. "Now that the situation is clearer where is Benji? I mean the wolf." Motoko asked looking around, she haven't seen a signal of him since he bolted out of the living room. "He is guarding the perimeter, checking for traps and other things planted by the assassins." Benji answered. Motoko nodded understanding; the senses of a wolf are by far more sensitive than human's.

"Okay and how you got here so fast?" Motoko asked. "I am always around the area." Benji answered. "I sleep in a cabin not much distant from here." "I think that I know the one." Motoko commented. "I think that after the current incident it would be better if you moved here, I will try convincing the others to let you move to a room next to Ranko's."

"I appreciate the offer but it would be better if I remained in the cabin." Benji replied. "It would be too suspicious if I moved here and there is other reasons, in the cabin I can easily leave to part whenever I want, here I would be noticed not only by the inhabitants but the enemy if they are watching this place." Motoko nodded understanding.

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Ranko sighed tiredly; Motoko had left to her room leaving her and Benji alone. "You really think that is wise to remain here after this?" Ranko asked seriously, while she didn't want to abandon her new life she also didn't want to risk everyone because her selfishness.

"It is the best in the actual circumstances." Benji answered. "Leaving now would make things hard on the others, I don't really know who sent those invaders but we can't just leave now, I am working on the woman that I haven't killed, so I should get some information from her."

Ranko can imagine what kind of work Benji is talking about and remain in silence. "I will go check on her now, you keep your eyes open, I doubt that they will come again so soon but is better being safe than sorry." Benji added. Ranko nodded in silence and watches Benji leaving.

A short while later Benji is on the café where he was attacked by Eri's owners. "Welcome master." Eri said running to the door when feeling his scent upon his arrival. "Thanks." Benji replied. "How is the guest?" "I secured her in the basement, since it was made to hold were-beasts and other powerful magical beings she won't be able to use magic in there or escape" Eri answered with a smile, as Benji figured on their first meeting Eri was of a low rank in a wolf pack and was happy in obeying orders of a strong alpha.

Benji follows the omega lycan woman down the so called basement, it started as a common basement, but a hidden passage leads to an even lower dungeon. Benji was aware that he scored a jackpot when killing that pack.

While Eri was an omega and content with servitude she wasn't happy with her previous condition, her loyalty was ensured by the collar and a great deal of abuse, naturally submissive even unhappy she wouldn't fight the pack. The attempt of trapping Benji resulted in her change to a better pack, a small one but she was content in serving an alpha werewolf and not forced to subdue to a were-bear.

With that Benji gained a valuable source of knowledge of the underworld, both natural and magical, which he makes extensive use of, the café was closed and became his secondary headquarters, more of main one since he only lived in the Hinata-sou. "What you did to her so far?" Benji asked to the blonde woman.

"Tied her to a cross with strong leather and metal restraints, she is unable to move, even squirm on the cross." Eri answered. "She can't use her strength to break the bonds since she can't move even a single millimeter, I also drugged her, have you heard of sodium pentothal?"

"Yeah, truth serum." Benji replied casually, he does know that much. "I gave to her a dose of a magical version of a similar drug." Eri explained. "We vulgarly call it painful truth, because lying under influence is very painful, don't ask me for details because I don't know them, it has something to do with brain chemistry and activity."

"Fair enough." Benji commented not really interested. "But it causes permanent damage?" "No" Eri answered. "It is being used for thirty years without permanent damage or fatalities, of course when it is used within the safe dosages, more than thirty CCs of it can cause cardiac arrest, over forty pulmonary failure and over forty five instant death. The acceptable limit is thirty three CCs within twenty four hours."

"And how much you gave her?" Benji asked. "Thirteen CCs." Eri answered. "While I wasn't part of the interrogation and other parts of the job I often heard them commenting that thirteen CCs are enough to even the stronger soldier to spill the truth, the pain level of lying increases with the dosage, above thirty five CCs it is rumored to give permanent damage to the brain and nervous system."

"And why they interrogated people?" Benji asked, Eri placed the woman in the most distant room of the basement. "To extract bank account numbers and other information that could be profitable before sending the merchandise to be sold." Eri answered. "They used of any method to make easy money."

Benji remained in silence understanding what she said without words. Arriving on the cell Benji sees the woman tied in a cross that is bolted against the solid stone wall of the back of the cell, her feet aren't touching the ground; she is bound, gagged and blindfolded.

"It is just me or those restraints look too much like S&M things?" Benji asked to Eri. "They can also function as those." Eri answered with a smile. "At the moment she can't hear anything with that cap, total sensorial isolation also helps to make them more willing to speak."

Benji nodded, the woman's black suit is gone, she is only wearing a pair of black leather panties and Benji had the feeling that those weren't hers in the first place, most of her body was covered by the black leather restraints with metallic reinforcements, trails of saliva run down from the ball gag on her mouth running down her chin and falling over the restrains covering her chest.

"Remove the cap that prevents her from hearing." Benji commanded, he has no idea of how the thing is strapped so it is better leave it to Eri. Eri nodded and obeyed. "The gag too?" She asked as red hair cascades when the cap is removed. "She can't speak gagged can she?" Benji asked back. Eri smiled and removes the gag, the woman tries to swallow and gather moisture on her sore mouth.

She spits on Eri who doesn't even show a sign of anger or disgust. "Honey I have been covered in things that would make your skin crawl." Eri said scooping the saliva from her face and licking it playfully. "Just some saliva doesn't bother me, I swallow this all the time, and when you kiss you get from someone else."

Benji had to admit that Eri's reaction threw the woman off; she was clearly expecting some kind of anger response. "And from the buzz that you must be feeling right now you should know that you were drugged." Eri continued. "Master you want to interrogate her or I do it?" she asked turning to Benji.

"Go ahead you are doing a fine job, I let you know if I change my mind." Benji answered. "Okay." Eri replied turning back to the woman. "You are a magician aren't you?" "N…!" Before she could end her reply she shouts in pain. Eri smiled casually. "Then the truth is yes." She purred.

It takes ten seconds to the woman stop screaming, she gasps for breath while feeling the aftershocks of pain on her body. "Here are my terms of interrogation." Eri said pulling a small remote from her jacket pocket, she flips a small switch and the woman screams, this time in pleasure. "You lie and you feel pain, you tell the truth and I reward you. Simple isn't it?"

Switching off the hidden machine Eri looked at the woman. "We will be staying here for a long time, those panties that you are wearing are waterproof so doesn't matter if you soak them with anything, they will keep working, and they are plugged to the wall so I can keep them going and going." Eri said to the woman. "Which by itself can also be used as torture, I can set the vibration to the just right level that it will bring you to the brink of orgasm and leave it there so you won't get it no matter how much you want, and trust me girl that can be a torture."

Benji had to admit to someone who said that didn't tortured or interrogated anyone Eri was doing a damn of a good job, at least the start was very promising since the red haired woman was indeed looking scared. "So what is going to be?" Eri asked. "A rewarding truth or a painful lie? Don't forget that if we get on the limit of the use of the drug I can leave you on the brink of orgasm for days if I want to."

"I won't say anything, you can't break me." She replied. Eri smiled. "What is your name?" She asked. "Hasegawa Fuuka." The woman answered not really wanting to. "As you should know the painful truth can make you more inclined to speak, normally it makes a person two times more talkative, so even if you sober wouldn't tell us your name now you will, you can't remain silent with the drug on your system, lying and concealing information only hurts, right Fuuka-chan?"

"Right." She replied unwillingly, Fuuka let out a cry of pleasure as Eri flips the switch again and leave it on for five seconds. "Good." Eri commented. "That is how it works. Now there were twelve of you on today's attack?" "Yes." Fuuka answered; once again Eri rewarded the red head for the truth.

Benji was beginning to get excited and bothered by the hormones and sight in front of him. "Well it seems like you can handle the situation well." Benji said to Eri. "You don't want to watch?" Eri asked turning to Benji and leaving the switch still on. "While liking porn as any other male I am not really fond of S&M." Benji answered. "And I am getting bothered by her hormones."

"If the problem is that I can easily deal with it." Eri replied with a smile. "As many times as you like." Benji remained in silence wondering on what to do, his most animal side was saying to accept, his human side was saying to accept, even his rational side was telling him to stop being stupid and accept the kind offer. 'Well it is unanimous…' Benji thought wryly as all the possible parts of his mind and anatomy agreed with each other. 'Temptation and pleasure of the flesh over seven hundred, reason zero…well who am I to complain anyway?'

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Motoko is meditating on her bedroom; she had doubts of how to deal with everything that she witnessed on that day. 'Death…I thought that I was ready for it…that I could end my life at any moments without regrets or dishonor…but I was wrong…that fear…that sakki…that intensity…that demonic intensity…'

She remembered her frightened voice, how terrified she sounded, how pathetic she was. She was shaking so hard that when she managed to draw her sword the edge was practically dancing, her knees were shaking hard, just by favor of destiny she had used the restroom before the incident, Motoko knew that she would have lost the control of her bladder on that moment if it was full.

Motoko felt unworthy of being the successor Shinmei-ryu. 'My sister wouldn't have even been shaken by that…' Motoko thought wryly. '……their eyes…they are very different…my sister looks like a demon…Benji…he is……he is a beast……a savage beast……but……why such precision…….'

Motoko was replaying everything that she saw of the attack, how Benji killed in split seconds four men using twenty seven throwing knives, after that how the two after those fell with their neck arteries open, gushing out blood in a strong pulsing spray, she could remember the terror on their eyes as they held on their throats in a vain attempt of stopping the bleeding, how the blood jetted and squirted from between their fingers.

She could barely follow the speed of Benji's hands as he pounded on the ninth man and threw him above Shinobu, how Benji leaped after him and in midair grabbed his pray and killing it before they hit the ground.

And then there was the finishing, when that sole woman, the only survivor of the group of assassins pressed a gun against the back of his head he used a split second of distraction, the moment that Ranko called out for him worried to subdue the woman, Motoko shivered in recalling of how he slapped the gun away just before it went of, sending the bullet to impact harmlessly on a trunk, the following moves made her shiver even more of how he hitted her and grabbed the still stunned and unbalanced woman by her tie preventing her from falling to her death.

Lastly there was the last of the assassins that tried to rescue his leader, he met his fate in what Motoko could only imagine as the most painful way possible to inflict a quick death, when a child she broke her finger in a sparring section, she were careless and her hand were hit instead of her sword, it was the worse pain that Motoko could ever remember feeling, but she knew that was nothing compared to the smashed knee.

It made her stomach crawl and knot when recalling how the man fell as the joint bended in a unnatural way, then Benji broke the man's arm, she knew that was an exposed fracture, normal fractures doesn't cause external bleeding. She swallowed uncomfortably when recalling of how Benji smashed his right knee on the man's face and how the bones shattered so badly on the man's face that it left a deep depression on his face.

It was different from when she saw in the movies, even thought Japanese movies are perfectionists on reality of wounds it was beyond anything, and she never saw a real wound before, only small cuts, bruises and other minor injuries.

'How could I think of myself as a true warrior…?' Motoko thought as even the memories of that morning filled her with fear. 'How could I act so prideful and arrogant…..**Don't worry I used the back of my sword.**...those were my words…I said them when striking those yakuza looking men in Kyoto that were harassing Shinobu……Kiri-sute gomen……permission to cut and kill another human being…..that was long outlawed……the samurai who I look up to are long dead……the class doesn't exist anymore……we hardly keep up the traditions and values of our ancestors……nearly one century as passed since the fall of the samurai……'

Reaching for her Shisui Motoko closes her eyes before her fingers touch the familiar wood of her sword's scabbard. 'How…' Motoko licks her lips nervously. 'Shisui…how it feels to cut something that lives…how it feels to cut humans…' Motoko feels disgusted at her thoughts but she knows that if she ever wants to be a true successor of the Shinmei-ryu she would have to kill demons; and wanting or not to admit demons are also living creatures.

Motoko stands up and rests the Shisui on her rack. 'Until I come to terms with myself and understand what is wrong with my spirit I am not worth of touching you.' Motoko thought seeing her sword resting on the black lacquered rack. 'I need enlightenment……until now I behaved as a child playing samurai……I never truly understood the truth behind this path……kill or be killed……die for my honor…….name……family……kill for them……I need to talk to someone……someone who felt…….someone who killed….that felt……felt flesh and bone give in against his blade……someone who knows……'

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Benji stretched and yawned walking on the middle of the woods around the pension, he was tired but pleased and satisfied. 'Who would know that getting myself a female werewolf would be so good… ?' Benji idly thought. 'I really have to admit that experience does make things different…Eri makes even Nodoka seem like a inexperienced little girl……and her scent……'

Benji could feel his mouth watering as he remembers of the delicious scent of the blonde, he inhaled in so much and felt it so often that Benji wouldn't be able to forget it, the fact that he still could smell faintly her scent on his body only made easier to him recall it and what they have done for hours. Wolf like stamina was really something else.

'If this keeps up she will be my death……' Benji smiled at the idea, it wasn't such bad way to go. 'I almost feel bad for Fuuka. Eri really knows what she was doing; she broke Fuuka down quite easily, it is almost scary of how Eri got Fuuka so addicted to sex. If it is true then I can……'

Benji stops moving, he crouches and pulls his dagger from his jacket. 'There is someone out here…' Benji sniffs the air trying to detect the scent of the person but the wind was blowing from behind his back and the scent was taken away by it, he detected the person by a minute snap of a twig.

Silently Benji runs on the leaf and twig covered ground at the direction of the trespasser. Benji tackles the offender as it walks from behind one of the many trees, pinning the smaller person on the ground Benji holds it with his left hand over the person mouth and his dagger high ready to deliver the killing blow. "Motoko?" Benji asked feeling the familiar scent before recognizing the girl.

End of the chapter six:

Author explanation corner:

Hinata-sou attack: As said in the last chapter something really bad was going to happen, this was it, it wasn't truly bad for Benji and Ranko, their curses are still a secret, but a feeling of dread doesn't mean that the bad thing will happen to the person who has it; Motoko was the one who took the brunt of the badness of the attack, at least on the psychological side.

Motoko never cut anything other than stones, wood, vegetables, training straw dummies, perhaps metal and plastic. Even with martial training there is a world of difference between theory and training and true life or death combat. Motoko is only a teenager, she also left the dojo before she completed her training, so she lacks of the in depths of true combat training and preparations.

Show by Motoko's memories on the official media Tsuruko have at least killed countless demons, maybe even some evil humans or half demons, it would be ridiculous to think that Tsuruko haven't killed anything given her past of member of a demon killing group.

Weighting what is told by the official media plus some imagination and personal theories it is clear that Motoko haven't trained fighting someone who is really out for blood, her reactions to her sister's violent moods is evidence of that. However Motoko is a samurai girl, she trained to be as close of the samurai of the past as possible so she would attempt to understand what she lacks and that is feeling how it feels to cut flesh and bone.

In the chapter twenty seven Motoko says that she doesn't know how to use a kitchen knife, that also shows very little cooking experience, true she does cook the chapter seventy three (Maid Motoko YEAH!), based in the total lack of beef or meat on the dishes Motoko never had cut even meat, so the feeling is not only alien but totally unknown for her.

By personal experience (not in humans or live creatures just ribs and other cuts of beef with bone in it) cutting bones is very hard, you need a heavy and sturdy blade to do it, a cleaver or butcher's knife, cutting flesh and muscle can be very hard without a sharp knife.

Anyway back to Motoko, she is an almost normal teenager girl who never faced a life or death situation (ignoring nonsense sister actions), she never faced the idea of killing another human, she was most likely trained to not kill humans, based on her using the back of her sword when striking the yakuza to protect Shinobu.

Facing the brutal slaying of several men, even being strangers is a clearly traumatic event for Motoko, also adding that she knows Benji and she was scared of him. Motoko is a brave girl no one can deny that but she isn't stupid either, she saw an assassin killing and felt his killing intent (sakki), she also felt similar things from her sister (Tsuruko using her demon eyes and aura to scare the shit out of Motoko), it is natural for her to be scared.

Anyway the whole incident isn't over yet there is more to come too.

Eri AKA Blonde woman in the alley, Blonde stalker, Nice rear end: Yup she chose living, as many people would have chosen in similar situations more details of that on the extra scene bellow.

Eri is an omega, in a wolf pack that is the lowest rank possible; it is the punch bag, stress relief, clown of the pack. Naturally subservient and adaptable, her role in the pack/gang was of lure for new victims, also fuck toy and recipient of all kind of abuse, also used as secondary source of income as prostitute and blackmail material to certain clients/victims (read rich men).

Bought in a slave market in a country to be named in a later occasion, Eri is originally Japanese of mixed heritage, blonde hair and blue eyes don't come naturally for pure Japanese. The circumstances of her capture and part of her life in the previous pack might be revealed on the story depending of how the story turns and the importance of it on the story.

Eri is also well versed in the ways of the underworld both magical and natural because of the illegal actions of her pack, she is very experienced in the sex arena because being abused, prostituted, used as sex toy and her own experience before being a slave, she has a masochist streak because her coded role as omega, but she has her moments of mastery. After all not all men like of being in charge.

Painful truth: The name sucks I know, I just threw something together since I needed a magical truth serum, and the side effects are slightly based on the side effects of sodium pentothal.

Vibrating panties: Do a goggle search and you will find several in the net, they are a regular sex toy, but one inventive mind can use it on different but interesting ways.

Ball gag: Just what the name says, it is a simple hollow ball gag with holes on it, it is held behind the teeth, makes the user droll with out control in addition preventing the user/victim of biting and talking.

Magic Special Forces: The magic version of Special Forces; might be just humans aware of magic with some training and magically enhanced equipment or mages specialized in 'more actual' combat and magic focused confrontation against targets without damaging the surroundings or hostages.

As Evangeline from Negima compared mages to cannons during large scale battles magic Special Forces are the SWAT or DELTA FORCE teams of the magic world, focusing in spells that allow the quick and effective submission of a target, if normal mages are cannons the Special Forces mage is a sniper's rifle.

Extra scenes:

………After the events in the café in the chapter four………………………………………………………

"Man real thing is amazing." Benji commented seeing the blonde already standing up less than half an hour after Benji cauterized shut her artery, now the only remain of the vicious wound was a quickly fading scar and some huskiness on her voice that is quickly fading too. "If I could heal like that……" Benji sighed in annoyance.

Benji throws a bloodied mop in a bucket filled with dark red water. "So how I dispose the corpses?" Benji asked to the blonde who is sited on a chair recovering from the ordeal as well getting used to her freedom, she was in a pack but wasn't a slave, it was her own choice that allowed her to enter in a pack.

"There is an acid tank in the basement." Eri answered looking at the piled up corpses over a table, all the lycanthropes changed back to their original human form after their death, she would almost miss Kimiko, the were-fox, and she was almost nice to her. "They kept it there in case of killing someone during the process of capture or initial training, after the acid dissolves the corpses it is only dumping it on the sewer."

"Practical." Benji commented casually. "Give me few more minutes and I will help on the disposal." She said running her fingers on her neck, the pain was almost gone. Benji stretched and nodded; with her helping it would cut the trips to the acid tank in half. Benji decided to voice a question that was bugging him since he first saw Eri.

"What color is your fur when you change to your war form?" Benji asked looking at her again. "Dark brown and dark grey." Eri answered lightly tilting her head to the side. "Why?" "Well since you are blonde I wondered if you would turn into a blonde wolf." Benji replied casually. "So you aren't a natural blonde?"

"I am a natural blonde!" Eri protested bolding to her feet, she had more than her share of disbelievers of her hair color, given her naturally tanned skin and Japanese features. "See?!" "Point taken." Benji said keeping his wits, even thought surprised by her actions. "Now lower that skirt and pull your panties back up." He added with a sigh. 'This isn't good for my health; it has been months since the last time and living in the Hinata-sou aren't really helping on that……'

"You don't like it?" Eri asked disappointed, but obeying his orders and straightening her clothes. "Of course that I liked the view. Any male would, well other than gays, but I am sure that they would find it pleasing too." Benji replied absent minded, he was making plans of how get laid before returning to the pension. 'The scent got stronger……?'

Then Benji realized Eri walking towards him licking her lips. "Hold on a second there!" Benji exclaimed. "Don't tell me that you are getting aroused?!" "Why I shouldn't?" She asked lightly tracing circles on Benji's chest. "A powerful and young MALE alpha, letting out such delicious pheromones would arouse any female. You should know that an alpha can have any female on his pack……"

Benji could easily feel the scent of her own pheromones tickling his nose, letting him know of his effect on her and how much she wants to mate, it was hard for Benji to remain rational with both his human and wolf's instincts shouting for him to take that willingly, attractive and alluring female and mate her until he is too tired to do it.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"You smell funny." Shiaki commented looking at her drained looking student. "And look like something that death brought with her." Benji snickered. "Death is blonde and her actions too irresistible…" Benji muttered tired. "That is a first." Shiaki commented. "So what you faced?"

"A werewolf a little less than twice older than me." Benji answered. "A female one." "So how is the sex of the wolves?" Shiaki teased. "Too wild for you." Benji shot back. "Nothing is too wild for me." Shiaki said annoyed. "Now don't try or I will fire two double ought buckshot shots on you." Benji said holding a sawed off over and under shotgun. "Just God knows what I might catch from you."

"I am clean!" Shiaki exclaimed even angrier. "If you aren't up to is then just say so!" "After six straight hours?! You could line up models and tell them to strip and seduce me that not even my pulse will change." Benji said flatly. "I think that it will take a couple of weeks before my libido returns from the vacation, so much for wanting sex."

"Not even a small break?" Shiaki asked surprised. "I think that we had some small one minute or two breaks that totals fifteen minutes during the entire thing." Benji commented scratching his chin with the barrel of the gun. "And one hour were in wolf form, three in war form and two in human form. I had to admit that I learned some pretty interesting things this afternoon, I never knew that……"

"How a second there, you two rutted in war form?" Shiaki asked seriously. "You mean the more than three meters tall four hundred kilos mass of slim and solid muscle bestial form?" "That one." Benji replied. "Kissing a human in war form is something quite interesting."

"Tell me that you taped it." Shiaki said glaring at him, that tape would spice a lot her next party. "Even if I had I wouldn't give to you." Benji replied in a flat tone. "Anyway I am not here to discuss my newly reacquired sex life, I am here to call off today's hit on Nodoka, I am not in shape to destroy anything tonight, I want to sleep for one day or two and I will eat the throat of anyone who disturbs me."

"Fine point taken spoilsport." Shiaki spat angrily. "Mou…..interspecies sex like that would be really popular, how hot is the woman?" "How enough to melt steel with her stare." Benji answered. "And if you try tailing me and film me having sex I will shove this shotgun up your ass and give you a buckshot enema!"

"Now Benji you think is that a threat or an incentive for me?" Shiaki teasingly inquired. "I really don't want to find out." Benji said walking away. "I want more details later!" Shiaki called as he leaves her apartment. "I won't tell you anything!" Benji shouted back. "For Christ's sake what annoying woman…..."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"What in name of heavens marked you back like that?!" Ranko exclaimed in horror seeing several streaks of scars on his back where before those scars where inexistent. "It wasn't anything serious." Benji replied recalling of Eri scratching him rather badly while in the thralls of passion, back then didn't bothered him at all, later she gave him a healing potion and said that the scarring should vanish in few days.

Ranko remained in silence but studies the scars, she could tell that were made in sets of five and moved from the middle of his back to the sides and there were many of them on his back.

………On the day of the okonomiaki dinner…………………………………………………………………………………………

'……this is too good……' Benji said while Motoko discovered a new spot to scratch on Benji, right under his collar bone. Motoko chuckled seeing the wolf happy with her ministrations, wondering how something so simple as a light scratching with well trimmed but not short nails could give him so much pleasure.

Benji doesn't even notice that he is wagging his tail at the sensation; Motoko continues to scratch him and chuckling. "So if I give you this nice pay you will help me with that turtle?" Motoko cooed happily. "…….!" Benji barely restrained himself from answering verbally and ruining his disguise, the sensation was so good what he was forgetting that he had to hold his voice down.

"As long you help me with that turtle when I need I will give you nice rewards." Motoko continued not noticing Benji's almost slip. "Nice scratching sections, bleeding steaks, hugs and kisses." 'Not that I don't want hugs and kisses but you won me on the scratching…!' Motoko leans down and tightly hugs Benji. "……warm……soft……" Motoko murmured with her face pressed against his neck.

Benji shivered at how sexy Motoko's murmur was and how warm her body feels against his even with his fur and her clothes between them, Motoko is hugging him very tightly. "……this isn't……samurai like but I think that I will take a nap like this……" Motoko murmured against his neck. "……you don't mind do you……?"

Benji sighed inwardly and kept his hormones in check, he had to admit that the sun was nice and warm, the balcony was with a nice breeze and fresh, perfect for a nap and Motoko was nice and warm; but he knows that when Motoko learns the truth about him she will have his hide, however he can't just refuse.

Ranko looks at the scene from a safe distance and with the wind blowing against her from the direction where Benji is with Motoko, so he can't catch her scent. She is jealous but can't just interrupt them. 'You are so going to pay for fawning over her like this, tonight you will puke your guts out.' Ranko thought recalling of Shinobu chopping cabbage for the okonomiaki. 'Yes, you will pay for being that frisky.'

………After Benji bombed Nabiki's safe house and before the attack at the pension…….

Kasumi looked at Nabiki; this second trip to the hospital was by far worse for her sister than the first. Kasumi couldn't really see the extension of the damage, but the fact that all that she sees of Nabiki is a white blur with reddish spots means that it was very bad, not to mention that Nabiki was attached to several machines in the ICU.

In another room Nodoka is speaking to a doctor and a man wearing a black suit with a dark red shirt and black tie. "What happened to her this time?" Nodoka asked, she hardly recovered from a heart attack and learned that Nabiki was back to the hospital in critical condition.

"At three AM of July eleventh of this year, an unknown person or group launched an attack against Tendo-san's personal quarters." The man in suit said in a level and professional tone. "At that time Tendo-san was with one of her acquaintances, with the amount of damage on the bullet proof glass, the state of the remains of the security officer guarding the perimeter that night and the destruction outside the house over twenty kilos of explosives where used."

"Go on." Nodoka said hearing attentively not displaying the anger and fury at such attack or the confusion of someone locating the private quarters of them, the ones that they considered to be home and not the locations that they claimed to live in.

"The body of the officer had the similar function of a water bag over an explosive charge; it directed most of the force towards the glass than for the opposite direction as it would occur in a usual explosion." The man continued. "Because of the physics of the explosion, which we believe to be planned like that, the inner layer of the glass shattered and acted as spalling from a HESH antitank shell, the glass became razor sharp shrapnel and effectively penetrated and destroyed everything inside the room and damaged the hallway behind the room, Tendo-san's acquaintance perished in this hospital."

The doctor continued from there. "Tendo-san's wounds were very severe, but nowhere as bad as her acquaintance's, from the position that they were found she protected Tendo-san with her body taking the brunt of the damage and slowing down the glass shards before they hit Tendo-san."

'It has to be Sakura, she is the only one that would be so fiercely loyal to Nabiki; no one else would shield her with her body.' Nodoka thought. "And how is Nabiki's condition?" "Still critical but better than she was two nights ago." The doctor answered. "By request of the acquaintance we transplanted to Tendo-san any usable organs and tissues after her death, those were her last words. Then we transplanted to Tendo-san a new heart, kidney, liver that was damaged in the blast, part of the intestines, the left foot, right hand and forearm, and we have also transplanted her eyes."

The doctor makes an uneasy pause, and Nodoka detects it. "What else?" Nodoka asked looking straight at him. "The womb was also transplanted; we aren't expecting rejection from any of the transplanted tissue." The doctor answered tensely. Nodoka laughed a little ignoring the pain. "You are telling me that you gave to Nabiki Sakura's womb? She would kill you just for the eyes; I hope that you have enjoyed your life a lot because she will make sure that you will suffer for a long time."

The doctor swallowed nervously, the surgeon thought that Nabiki would be content with the transplanted eyes and womb. "How long before she recovers?" Nodoka asked ignoring the fright in the doctor. "She should wake in three days, we are keeping her on an induced coma to monitor her condition and be ready to eventualities, to be ready to duty no less than six months to one year just to recover enough to physiotherapy."

"And about the attackers any evidence?" Nodoka asked to the man in suit. "We believe that are the thieves that are attacking the organization." The man answered. "The tracer on the C-4 matches our personal signature, it was clearly an attack against the organization showing that they not only have our equipment, but know how to use it and will use it against us."

Nodoka remained in silence, she expected that kind of action but not so soon and so vicious, she expected small terrorism, sparse attacks focused on public areas of the organization; that level of daring and focus on a high ranked member of the organization showed careful planning and targeting, clearly intending to impair the organization by cutting off the leaders, weakening greatly the effectiveness, that kind of daring isn't from small groups.

"Make a list of organizations that we have crossed in the past." Nodoka ordered. "Large groups of people that can be backing the thieves and the attack, alert the others members above the rank of major, they are to be confined to the underground facilities until a new order. I want the information yesterday."

"Yes ma'am!" The man replied saluting Nodoka, the two men leave the room and Nodoka remains alone. 'Who could be behind this attack……?' Nodoka mused silently. 'What kind of organization would so openly declare war but would remain silent, not make demands or announce itself after such attack?'

………After the 'interrogation' scene……………………………………………………………………………………………………

Benji scrubs himself under the warm jets of a shower in the café. "Eri will end sucking the life out of me like this……" Benji idly muttered. "And it has to be something happening to me other than lack of a regular sex routine, maybe is all those female pheromones that I am inhaling on a daily basis…… or something in the water……is not that and more……"

"Master you want me to scrub your back?" Eri offered from the other side of the door of the bathroom. "Thanks but no thanks." Benji replied. "Knowing you it would change to a shower sex scene." Eri giggled, sticking out her tongue playfully at being caught so easily.

"Anyway what about Fuuka?" Benji asked ignoring how pleasant Eri's laugh is. "Horny as hell after our little section in front of her." Eri answered cheerfully. "So I left her plugged on the wall with the power in seventy five percent, enough to keep her running hot and not give her any release, in one hour or two I will give her some fluids, she will need it."

"Anyway how you know that much about torture when you said that you didn't do any with your other pack?" Benji asked turning off the water. "While I never tortured anyone as they did they used me as a way of produce steady income, as prostitute, I am clean so you don't have to worry about anything from me, I would die before infecting my master with something." Eri said seriously. "Among those who called themselves my clients there was some who liked S&M play, mostly with me as the S of the pair, since there was also females on the list I learned a handful of things, I am a very dedicate student."

Benji remained in silence, but again that explained her experience in the nightly activities. "What else you know other than that?" Benji asked, he hasn't really questioned her about her own skills because mostly interested in the underworld.

"I used to be in law school before I was captured." Eri answered. "But that was because my family forced me, I wanted to become a doctor and juggled between the two, I also bake wonderful cakes and am a skilled cook. I used to be part of the news club of the college. I have a handful more of skills that you might not find useful."

"I judge that." Benji replied. "Okay then." Eri commented. "I can mix perfumes, I do that as hobby and as a way to make pocket money." "And that explains your scent." Benji commented understanding. "My scent isn't a perfume even thought I made a perfume similar to it." Eri commented cheerfully. "That scent is one hundred percent me."

'Intriguing.' Benji thought idly. "I have household maintenance skills." Eri continued. "Even a maid outfit." 'Ugh……maid…….' "You did that in purpose didn't you?" Benji asked drying himself. "It was that noticeable?" Eri asked innocently. "Going back to your skills." Benji said before he felt the lust building up, and making a mental note of having Eri on a maid outfit any time soon.

"I am an amateur alchemist; I can mix up potions, both alchemical and magical." Eri continued. "It is an upgrade of my perfumer hobby, I was kept also because my ability to mix up potions that would be too expensive to purchase, so they buy the ingredients cheaply and have a large supply or potions also drugs."

"The drug part is dangerous but the potion is interesting." Benji commented. "It is a very useful skill." "But I don't really like it all that much, at least from the way that they made me do it, large vats and vats of them whenever I wasn't out to make money to them." Eri said sadly. "I am not like that, you give me an inventory of what we have and what you can do…we have more healing potions?" Benji replied.

"A whole two hundred litters steel drum why?" Eri asked confused. "Just checking, I might need some." Benji answered. "I will put some in vials for you." Eri commented. "I also make very powerful aphrodisiac potions and drugs, want to try some?" "You are trying to kill me?" Benji asked. "We can do for six to twelve hours in a row without any kind of aid with aphrodisiac I don't want even imagine how long it would be."

"With me was around forty eight hours drinking a 50ml vial of it." Eri said with a smile. "It can be a very intense experience with moderate use." "Pack two of those, just in case that I am attacked by a horde of sex hungry succubus on my way home." Benji said wondering if was wise to keep those potions, but then he never knows when the time will come that he will need to give a especial lady a 'night that she will never forget about', having a pair of those might be handy if he stumbles in one of those and considering his luck since his arrival he knows that he would eventually stumble in one of those.

"Yes master." Eri answered casually. "Out of curiosity you don't have stamina potions do you?" Benji asked. "Plain physical stamina, mental stamina or sexual stamina?" Eri inquired in a sing tone way. "Six vials of the first two and that is ……and make ten of the last one too." Benji answered, he knew better than not getting that one. "Hai, hai." Eri commented with a smile.

"Add an eleventh of the last one." Benji said leaving the bathroom. "I want that one ASAP." "HAI!" Eri squealed cheerfully running to get the potion, she hoped for a reward but wasn't really expecting it so soon. 'Yup…either her or my never lessening lust will be my death…but then many men would kill to get this kind of death.' Benji thought taking a look at the time. 'Enough time to bang the life out of her before turning in for the night in the pension. Anyway since I am going to hell I should enjoy this life of sin as much as I can.'


	7. Lesson

Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic. This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Love Hina I don't own or any of the characters of those shows. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed: Benji Himura.

This story begins in the Ranmaverse somewhere in the middle of the events of the chapter thirteen, actually between the release of Hinako and the events of the Gamble King events.

In the Love Hina timeline in the manga it stars after the chapter twenty six but before the chapter twenty seven.

This is a crossover so both stories casts or at least part of them will interact and there will be changes on both stories and on the plotline of Outcast Ranma. For anyone following the main story this scenario doesn't follow the same 'timeline' from the main story, it works on the line that timeline show on the story is the original one.

"Text" Talked sentences.

'Text' Thoughts.

-Text- Sounds effects.

(Text) Talked sentences in a foreign language as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

**Text**: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

_Text_: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

"_Text"_ Alteration in the voice, not in the tone but the voice itself.

Chapter seven: Lessons

Motoko was walking towards the cabin deep in the woods surrounding the pension property, she meditated and concluded that the best person to talk to was Benji, her sister wouldn't understand and much less help her; she would see that as a sign of weakness.

She couldn't wait for the morning to see Benji, the human one and not the wolf, even thought seeing the wolf would bring her comfort, what she truly wanted wasn't comfort but to learn the feel of flesh and bone giving under a sharp blade, it was late but she had to speak with him.

Motoko was surprised when feeling a massive impact from her left side; she was surprised that someone could run that quickly uphill in such a silence. Staring in terror at her immobility Motoko found herself pressed against the lightly matted ground as something heavy, much heavier than her strength could lift held her down, she couldn't even scream as she felt a strong and warm hand holding her down and clamping her mouth at the same time.

She saw the silver edge gleaming in the poor light of the woods, it would be the instrument of her death, Motoko was terrified but with dark curiosity she never looked away from the tip of the razor sharp edge. "Motoko?" A familiar male voice said clearly surprised.

Motoko recognized the voice, she was torn between a higher level of terror and relief; it was Benji and not some assassin that was there waiting for a victim. "Motoko what are you doing here?" Benji asked letting Motoko go. Motoko takes few deep breathes, trying to calm herself and hold back tears of relief.

"I needed to talk." Motoko said after several moments, taking his hand and help to stand up, she was still shaken up by this new incident but she was able to stand on her unsteady legs. "I was thinking since I returned to my room…I wasn't ready to this……I wasn't understanding the truth of the path of a warrior that I so vainly claimed to be taking……"

"But I am not really a samurai or a warrior." Benji replied. 'More like an assassin or a murderer…a killing machine or murderous monster depending of who you ask to…' he added dryly on him mind, he was well aware that he wasn't loved in Nerima on in Jusenkyo.

"You are a warrior, if not a warrior someone who trails a similar path." Motoko said seriously. "You are fighting to protect your sister and your own life, you killed……you know something that I pretended to understand……you know death……you don't fear it and deliver it without hesitation."

'Considering my instincts it is only natural.' Benji replied inwardly. 'Animals react to death differently than human, it is just a way to get food and something to be avoided, fought against but in the end accepted. I don't have the same morals that you do Motoko, not anymore.'

"Listen Motoko you don't want to know it." Benji said seriously recalling how it was before he was cursed and the curse removed that annoying regret and guilt from his mind. "Killing isn't something pretty, isn't beautiful or romantic, it is an ugly thing." "If I want to inherit my family's school I will have to kill demons." Motoko replied seriously. "One way or another I will have to kill."

"But not humans." Benji shot back. "It doesn't matter; I will be taking a life I need to understand it." Motoko said seriously. "I agreed in keep secret of Ranko's and yours situation so please aid me on this." Benji sighed but nodded, it was his fault anyway.

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Ranko was annoyed, dealing with Shinobu was easy, and the girl was so willing to believe that what she witnessed was a scary dream that she never questioned how she was in her bed and why she doesn't remember getting inside the pension and her room. But it wasn't the fact that she lied to such innocent girl who trusted and cared for others once you get past her initial shyness, that made Ranko annoyed, the lie was needed to preserve Shinobu's innocence.

It was her homework that is annoying the hell out of the orange haired girl, her math homework, it was pointless ask Benji for help on math, while able to use math the most advanced forms of it was as big of trouble for him as it was for her, Benji has a undying hate for math.

Ranko can't understand how she is going to use that kind of crap on her real life, why she would need to use a long formula with six letters on it to calculate areas of the surface of a desk with six flat surfaces. Ranko understands the use of math on her daily life, calculating how much the mangas that she buys when she goes to the bookstore total price, to buy food, count time and other things like that, and came to accept that basic math was needed on her life, but she can't see a practice use for all the other crap.

'Asking help to Keitaro is as pointless as being by myself…' Ranko mused tapping the side of her pencil against her chin. 'Kitsune is unreliable, she would most likely give me bad answers and charge for those, asking to Shinobu is embarrassing, Kaolla is as bad as Kitsune, that leaves Motoko and Naru, since what happened today I guess that I should leave Motoko alone until the morning…'

Gathering her book and notebook Ranko leaves the room and marches to Naru's room. Ranko knocks on the door. "Naru-san I need a help with math question mind in helping me out?" Ranko called after a couple of knocks. "I guess that is okay." Naru said opening the door. "That dog isn't around is he?"

"Benji is outside." Ranko answered not really understanding why Naru hates him. "He was out all day." "Explains why things are so nice today." Naru commented. "Come in." Ranko nodded entering on Naru's room. They sit by the table. "Okay what you need help with?" Naru asked.

Ranko opens her book and notebook. "This one here." Ranko answered pointing to an exercise with her pencil. "This is basic stuff Ranko." Naru said seriously. "I hate math and I don't see a purpose of learning such fancy things, how we are supposed to use that on our daily life?" Ranko replied.

"Well normally you don't, but they teach that for several reasons, one being that if you find that you like this kind of math or have talent for it you can become a mathematician or take a profession that uses advanced math as physics." Naru answered. "But I can understand that is a bit of wasted time and knowledge since most of people don't care, like or want to take that kind of work. But who knows Ranko one day this kind of math might save your life."

"Yeah right." Ranko snorted while Naru works in a way to explain the equation to Ranko. "I have more chances of finding a boyfriend than using this crap to save my life." 'Not that I want a boyfriend.' Ranko added to herself. '……well……if it is him……' Naru chuckled at Ranko's words not knowing what is going on her head.

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"There isn't much in here; I only use this place to sleep so I don't need much." Benji said to the younger girl as he lithe a fire in the proper area of the room, it wasn't all that cold but that area of the woods was chiller than the rest. "It is okay." Motoko replied looking at the lamp of the cabin, it was a weak incandescent one, it barely lithe the room.

The fires starts quickly, Benji had left the firewood there ready for use at any moment, since was very dry and ready in few minutes the fire warms the room and fills the cabin with a stronger light. Benji had made Motoko hold on his dagger while he lithe the fire, he had only one idea of how to teach Motoko and scare the hell out of her idea of wanting to know how it feels to use her blade against a human.

Motoko looks at the blade; it wasn't a tanto or any Japanese styled edge, the blade was twenty five centimeters long, double edged, the tip was sharp and strong, from there the blade widened to two inches until it reaches the lower third of the blade, it widened to four inches in the widest point, two sharp angles before it narrowed down back to two inches, the guard was a simple flat metal bar lightly curved down in a simple cross guard, the handle was big and anatomic fitting well in the hand no matter what grip is used, and it ended in a simple ball pommel not bigger than a marble.

'This is western style…' Motoko realized. 'This widening of the blade…what is its purpose……why changing the width of the blade like this……?' The dagger was surprisingly light but was thick and strong, balanced and sturdy; Motoko could tell that had everything to be a good combat knife.

'Above everything it is spotless clean……this was the one that he used earlier today but I can't find a spec of blood on it…' Motoko was so focused on the blade that doesn't notice Benji standing in front of her.

Motoko let out a surprised yelp when she feels Benji's warm right hand over her right hand, the one that is holding the dagger. "Let go." Motoko protested. "If you want it back just ask for it." "It isn't that." Benji said keeping a strong grip on Motoko's hand, she notices how close they are; he is so close that the tip of the now horizontally held dagger is lightly touching on his jacket.

"This is dangerous let go of me!" Motoko exclaimed, she is scared of him as well with her fear of males and the fear of accidentally stabbing him. "You wanted this." Benji said pulling her hand firmly towards him, the sharp edge piercing his clothes and penetrating on the flesh of his right side.

"Stop it!" Motoko screamed trying to pull away from him, but his grip is too strong and firm, she can't even make the dagger budge. The strong pressure continues and Motoko can feel the edge piercing him as it buries itself deeper on him. "Stop!" Motoko shouted crying, it wasn't that what she wanted.

Blood soaks Benji's clothes and Motoko could see the dark dampness of the stains on his clothes. Benji winced in pain, it was different from any wound that he suffered, the slow stab was much worse than the sudden cuts and stabs that he suffered before. "This is how it feels to stab someone." Benji hissed to Motoko, barely able to keep the pain from his voice.

Motoko is crying unable to stop him, powerless as he holds her hand like that. With a sudden and stronger pull Benji buries the entire edge on himself. Motoko screamed as if she was the one stabbed, she could feel the blood running on her hand, the hot and stick feeling of the thick blood that coats the blade and hilt, smearing on her fingers.

"Can you feel it Motoko?" Benji asked in a short gasp. "How it is pulsing?" Motoko sobbed, she could feel his heartbeat through the edge, reverberating on it all the way to the handle and to her hand.

"One strong movement up and you cleave bone and a lung." Benji exhaled painfully. 'Definitely I am not fit to teach…' Swallowing painfully Benji takes a sharp breath. "One slash downwards you hit a kidney, intestines and few more organs. Twist and slash to my right……." Benji exhales slowly.

"And you will tear the way out of my body……" Benji finished. "Twist and slash to the left and you get to sever several organs, if you are strong and lucky enough even the spinal cord if you manage to slip the blade between my vertebras……"

"…L……let go……" Motoko sobbed, it was worse than she ever imagined, the stickiness of his rapidly cooling blood on her hand and on the handle, the pulsing of the dagger buried so deep on him that the tip came out from his back. Benji grinned painfully before tearing the edge from his body while Motoko still holds on it, the blood jets between them.

Motoko could almost see the droplets on the air as it came from him and hit on her formerly clean white kimono, the thick drops that fall from the soaked edge to the floor bellow them. Her breathing is ragged and her body is wracked by sobs, Motoko runs away from the cabin when Benji let go of her.

She runs as fast as her legs can take her away from there, never noticing that she never let go of the bloodied dagger. Benji sits and rests his back against a wall, quickly speed dialing Eri. "Definitely not one of my brightest ideas…" he muttered waiting for the line to connect.

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Motoko ignores the calls from the others as she runs to her room and locks herself in, she wanted to be alone. "Motoko-chan! Motoko-chan what happened?!" Naru asked worriedly from the other side of the door, banging on it. As well most of the others Naru noticed large red stains on Motoko's clothes.

"Nothing!" Motoko exclaimed with her back against the door. "I want to be alone!" "Motoko-chan why you are that dirty?! What happened?!" Naru asked again, she wasn't going to be refused, she would know what happened Motoko being willing to tell or not. "Nothing of your business!" Motoko shouted angrily. "Leave me alone!"

Naru cringes at the anger on Motoko's voice, not even Keitaro heard that before, no one saw Motoko lose her temper, well even angry and striking Keitaro Motoko was in control of her emotions. "Motoko I won't try to get in." Kitsune said in a level tone. "But it was that blood in your kimono? Is that anything to do with you being like this?"

Motoko swallowed hard, Kitsune had noticed. She couldn't tell them that she stabbed Benji, even thought he forced her to it, but she knows that leaving the question unanswered would be harmful. "It is from a kitten." Motoko lied. "I was walking to buy ice cream in the convenience store, I saw a kitten that was ran over by a car……I couldn't leave the poor thing like that……"

"Ahhh…… we will leave you alone now." Kitsune replied quickly ushering everyone away from Motoko's room. 'I lied to them……they believed on me……they know that I don't lie…...but I lied to them……' Motoko is startled by the sound of something heavy falling on the wooden floor of her room.

Hesitantly Motoko looks at the floor and sees the bloodied dagger nailed on the wood, the blood that coated the edge starting to pool on the polished wood beneath it, and Motoko did what anyone on her state of mind could do, she screamed in despair before fainting.

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"You are sure that it is okay to leave Motoko-chan like that?" Keitaro asked worried, the scream from Motoko really worried him. "Listen Keitaro Motoko doesn't want to be disturbed by anyone; you heard her tone when Naru pressed to know what happened." Kitsune answered seriously. "She wants to be alone; god knows what she might do to anyone who disturbs her now."

"But after all the threats and times that she hitted me I can't see Motoko-chan getting so affected by the death of a kitten." Keitaro replied with a nod. "Look Keitaro just because Motoko-san doesn't act like a girl it means that she isn't a girl." Ranko said seriously, actually to hide how uncomfortable the word kitten made her, it took lots of time to get used to a mewling turtle.

"I guess that you are right Ranko-san." Keitaro replied. "Motoko-chan must have a gentle and feminine side somewhere deep on her personality." Naru slugs Keitaro hard. "Don't badmouth Motoko-chan like that!" Naru shouted angrily, actually she was just venting the anger that she was feeling because Motoko's actions.

Ranko sighed. "I am going to my room." She announced. "Well I will go drink something." Kitsune commented, and one by one the girls move to do their own things.

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Benji returns to his shared room and throws himself over his futon, with a tired sigh Benji tries to find a more comfortable position but as a wolf there isn't all that many. "What happened?" Ranko asked from her bed. "Motoko-san returned with blood on her clothes and your dagger on her hand, but I am sure that no one else noticed that part."

"She wanted to know how it feels to kill something." Benji answered moving his head a little to look at the cursed girl. "She has an idea now." "Why I don't want to know it as much as I want to know it?" Ranko asked throwing her covers away and moving to Benji.

She runs his hands on his body but doesn't find a wound on him. "It healed." Benji answered. "Don't worry I made sure that she wouldn't get anything important." "Being stabbed isn't something that you should take lightly." Ranko shot back angrily. "You are important to me." Benji remained in silence unable to find the right word to comfort her.

End of the chapter seven:

Extra scenes:

………Two days after the attack and Motoko's lesson……………………………………………………………

The Hinata-sou is empty, Keitaro was send to another district by Naru, Naru was out with Kitsune, Shinobu and Kaolla to shop for clothes for the incoming summer, Motoko was in a kendo club meeting; only Benji and Ranko are on the pension, and that is about to change.

"Listen Ranko." Benji in his human form said about to leave the orange haired girl's room. "I am expecting a package and it is supposed to arrive here today, but I need to go handle some unexpected business, so stay here and receive it for me."

"Sure." Ranko answered from her bed where she is reading the most recent issue of her favored manga. "What it is?" "A large box of imported chocolate." Benji answered. "Expensive stuff. Anyway don't eat it; I have plans for it so don't even open it." "Sure." Ranko replied casually. "I like chocolates but I am not that addicted to them."

After few more minutes and reassurances Benji leaves the pension and moves to a delivery service office. "I want this box to be delivered at this address in two hours." Benji said to the clerk while handing a large flat box to the clerk.

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"I guess that I should fix myself something to eat." Ranko muttered hearing her stomach rumbling for the tenth time in the last half an hour, with an annoyed sigh she saves her game and leaves the computer. "I hope that we still have some leftovers." Her march to the kitchen is interrupted by someone calling from the entrance.

Ranko checks herself to make sure that she is dressed enough to answer the door, she is wearing loose shorts and a t-shirt, it is more than enough to answer the door, thought she would have preferred not to be wearing a pink shirt with a skimpy dressed anime girl on it, but she was short of clothes and raided Benji's stash of anime shirts, he never uses them.

"Yes?" Ranko asked opening the door. "I have a delivery for a Tachibana Benji." A man wearing the uniform of the delivery service that Benji hired said holding the box that Benji dispatched. "I will take it." Ranko said. "I am his sister." "Please sign here." The man replied, Ranko does so and takes the box.

"So this is the so expensive first rate chocolate from Switzerland that he is going to give to his pack mate?" Ranko asked looking at the box; she sniffs the box and lithe up. "This smells great! This can't be chocolate!" Ranko opens the box and sees the carefully made chocolates resting on their places within the box.

"This smells so good! Why I don't get chocolates like this?!" Ranko whined entranced by the chocolates. "I bath him, I feed him, and I keep him warm every night! I should get chocolates too!"

Far from there in the café. "How long before she starts eating them?" Eri asked casually, as they hear everything thanks a bug on Ranko's hairclip. "Ten seconds tops." Benji answered with a smile. "She is a chocoholic in denial, I made sure to get first rate stuff to make and fill with that drug."

"Why you waited so long to get payback?" Eri asked as they hear Ranko gobbling down the whole box of bonbons. "So she wouldn't be on her guard when I started my revenge." Benji answered with a pleased smile. "I am rather sure that she has no idea that I know what she did and I she must be thinking that I forgot all about that. But revenge is a dish that you eat cold, and wolves are patient." Eri nodded agreeing.

In the pension Ranko frantically shoves the box, wrappings and any trace of the box and chocolates in a bag, she races to her room and changes of clothes, running away from the pension Ranko only stops when she is far from the pension, almost in the edge of the district, then she throws the evidence away in a dumpster behind a restaurant.

"I need to make a really good excuse for this." Ranko muttered. "Like they didn't delivered or lost in the way, even better Kaolla found it!" Ranko grinned at the idea, it is a known fact that Kaolla eats everything that looks or not edible, she would wolf down the chocolates and forget all about it later.

Humming contently Ranko leaves to buy more chocolate, one for Kaolla to eat and other for herself as reward for the plan. In the café Benji grinned, Ranko doesn't have any idea of what she just ate and just tomorrow the medicine would start working.

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"Ranko you don't look all that hot today anything happened?" Tomomi, one of Ranko's friends asked. "You look a little pale." "It is nothing." Ranko answered with a small smile. "It is just some colic."

"Maybe you should have stayed home today." Riko, Ranko's neighbor in class commented. "I am stronger than some cramps and colic." Ranko said trying to sound peppy. A loud rumbling from her lower body broke the act. Ranko's eyes go wide and she bolts at her feet and runs out of the room, nearly tearing the door in her way out of the classroom.

"Don't run in the halls!" A teacher shouted at the speeding girl. "We should check on her." Riko said to Tomomi. "That almost sounded like thunder." Tomomi nodded and they run after Ranko knowing that they have just few more minutes before the class starts.

"OH GOD!" Ranko cried in pain sited in a toilet in the nearest restroom as her body violently discharges the waste from her bowels. "Ranko what in name of heavens you eat everyday?!" Riko shouted plugging her nose at the foul scent. "And why it is so noisy?!"

"I don't know?!" Ranko exclaimed as her body is wracked by another discharge of the foul material. "You must have eaten something bad!" Tomomi's voice came strangled as she clamps her mouth and nose fighting hard the nausea that she is feeling. "Really, really bad!"

"How much shit you have on you Ranko?!" Riko exclaimed as hearing once again the orange haired girl discharging, it was mixed with very wet and loud farts that polluted the entire room. "I don't know!" Ranko shouted. After a while Ranko leaves the stall after flushing the toilet for a long time.

"Girl you must have lost at least ten kilos at that." Riko said seeing the sweaty, disheveled and pale girl. "And you look like passed a bowling ball or two." "It felt like fifty balls." Ranko muttered walking to the sink to wash her hands and face. "We should repose the toilet paper on that stall." Tomomi commented.

"The janitor deals with that later." Riko replied breathing from the wide open window. "Ranko you really should watch what you eat, a girl can't shit like that, it can't be healthy, it almost sounded like you would shit your guts out."

"It felt like that." Ranko said washing her face, savoring the cold water washing away the sweat of her hot face. "I will start skipping Naru's breakfasts, something that look that bad can't be good for you."

"We should rush to the class, the literature class started five minutes ago." Tomomi said to her friends. "And Riko leave that window open." "I wasn't going to close it." Riko replied. "The stench would kill if concentrated in a closed room." "Gee that makes me feel really well." Ranko said dryly while drying her face and wiping the sweat from her neck.

"At least you don't look like you will die like you were before…how we even call it?" Riko asked to Tomomi. "Deep bowel forcefully cleansing?" Tomomi offered. "Sounds okay, anyway Ranko you look a little better now." Riko commented. "Now we should run to the class and see if we can sneak before the old sensei Kawamura notices us."

The trio nod and run out of the rest room, and do manage to slip in class unnoticed. Ranko focuses on the class even thought she can still feel the cramps and colic that she did feel much earlier on that morning and hopes that isn't a signal that it will happen again.

Ranko's hopes are shattered when she feels the almost unbearable pain that she felt moments before the first incident, running while trying to keep it in was even more painful, but Ranko managed to do it.

"You know it is the third time today." Riko said to Tomomi. "I wonder if she is with some kind of stomach bug or something, that can't be normal." "That isn't normal." Tomomi pointed out. "That never happened to Ranko before and we hang around together everyday."

"Ranko you need more paper?" Riko asked worried but trying to not laugh, it was her friend suffering there but was still too damn funny. "Yes!" Ranko answered in the stall, it was starting to look too familiar for her, and at least the graffiti there was a passable distraction.

"Actually none of the other stalls have paper." Tomomi said after checking the empty stalls. "And the storage room?" Ranko asked worried, there was just a little amount of paper on her stall, not enough for her. "It is locked." Tomomi answered. "I will call a teacher and ask for the key." Riko said. "I will back in a while, don't go away." "As if I can leave this damn place!!" Ranko shouted angrily at her friend's teasing.

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Ranko groaned resting against her desk. "If this go on I will die……" she murmured tiredly after the tenth rush to the restroom. "And is not even lunch break yet." Riko commented. "Maybe you should go home." "I agree with Riko, you are too ill to study." Tomomi added. "Ten times in one morning isn't good, the nurse and the teachers will understand."

"I won't let this defeat me." Ranko said trying to sound valiant. "Ranko you are flushing out everything that you eat or drink, in ten seconds you will bolt out of here." Tomomi said worried. "Come on Tomo-chan it isn't all that bad." Ranko replied with a smile. "……zero." Tomomi said. "Ugh……toilet!" Ranko grunted running out of the room.

"You actually timed it?" Riko asked in awe. "I noticed that it takes ten minutes after she eats and five if she drinks anything for her to run out." Tomomi answered. "After ten times I was able to measure it." "I will talk to the teacher." Riko said to her friend. "Otherwise Ranko will die in the toilet today. You go check on Ranko." Tomomi nods and leaves the room.

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The trip to the pension that Ranko always thought that was short felt like an eternity and a torture as she feared to lose control in the middle of the street, she ran as fast as she could knowing that she had only ten minutes before the next surge. Ranko enters in the pension finding it oddly silent, then she recalls that is early in the day and more than half of the tenants are in school

"So Ranko how was your day?" Benji in human form asked with a grin. Then it finally hits Ranko. "Those chocolates!" Ranko exclaimed pointing at him. "Exactly, the very ones that I told you to not eat, not open and just receive, the very ones that you said that Kaolla ate." Benji replied with a smile.

"You set me up!" Ranko exclaimed. "What you fed me?!" "Something that I call potion 46 a very, very powerful laxative." Benji answered casually. "It is payback for the okonomiaki dinner; you know very well how bad it is for me." "Nowhere as bad as this!" Ranko exclaimed. "Almost as bad, you are just expelling from the opposite end." Benji replied casually. Ranko remained in silence and runs to the restroom, she wonders if would be worth getting revenge but realizing that Benji would wait to get his back it wouldn't be worth since he plays dirty.


	8. Nekoken

Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic. This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Love Hina I don't own or any of the characters of those shows. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed: Benji Himura.

This story begins in the Ranmaverse somewhere in the middle of the events of the chapter thirteen, actually between the release of Hinako and the events of the Gamble King events.

In the Love Hina timeline in the manga it stars after the chapter twenty six but before the chapter twenty seven.

This is a crossover so both stories casts or at least part of them will interact and there will be changes on both stories and on the plotline of Outcast Ranma. For anyone following the main story this scenario doesn't follow the same 'timeline' from the main story, it works on the line that timeline show on the story is the original one.

"Text" Talked sentences.

'Text' Thoughts.

-Text- Sounds effects.

(Text) Talked sentences in a foreign language as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

**Text**: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

_Text_: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

"_Text"_ Alteration in the voice, not in the tone but the voice itself.

Chapter eight: Neko-ken

It took one week but Motoko managed to find some peace of spirit and sooth the turmoil of her thoughts. She really didn't want to admit but with the shock of stabbing Benji Motoko truly understood the path of the Shinmei-ryu, she understood what her blade could do and treated it with the proper caution and respect that it deserved and not only as symbol of what she wanted to be.

"Your skill seems to have increased in level Aoyama-kun." Sakura the teacher that was the responsible for the kendo club said to the swordswoman. "Anything happened?" "I learned something important." Motoko answered politely. "I had forgotten why the sword was firstly created for and what is its purpose, I claimed that my katana was my soul but I understood that I was wrong, my soul wasn't created to kill. My sword is a weapon and must be treated with respect and caution since an accident might take the life of someone, until I feel trained enough I can't claim that my Shisui is my soul."

Sakura nodded understanding. "But don't forget that there isn't need of focusing on the killing aspects of kendo Aoyama-kun." Sakura said with a smile. "The age of the samurai is long gone and there isn't a need for warriors, the spiritual growth and discipline is important too."

Motoko nodded politely, she knew better but wouldn't voice it; it would be reckless to alarm her teacher. "I am balancing everything now." Motoko said. "Now that I understand what I wasn't seeing about the sword I can say that my training will advance properly." Sakura nodded agreeing and let Motoko continue with her training.

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"Tachibana-kun." Tochiko said seeing Ranko walking on the hallway carrying a small basket filled with lettuces and cabbages. "Hai?" Ranko replied stopping and looking over her shoulder. "Himuro-sensei, it is anything wrong?" Ranko asked seeing the principal.

Tochiko smiled at Ranko. "Actually I think that I have good news." Tochiko answered. "You have the number for your brother's mobile?" "Yes." Ranko replied confused. "Mind in giving it to me?" Toshiko asked. "It is important." "Sure." Ranko said resting the basket against her hip, holding it only with her left hand, with her right hand she fishes her own cell phone from her skirt's pocket.

"9635-7716." Ranko said after checking the number on her phone's memory. Tochiko dials the number on her own phone. "Thank you." She replied with a smile. "May I ask what is about?" Ranko asked curious. "Don't tell to anyone but Shigure-sensei will be taking a prolonged leave after this summer vacation." Tochiko answered seriously. "And since you mentioned that your brother speaks fluent English I thought in have him working as substitute teacher on that period."

"But Benji doesn't have a teaching license." Ranko pointed out. "I am not even sure if he can teach all that well, I mean you are supposed to know the subject three times better to teach it to someone." "I worry about the license." Tochiko said with a smile. "And as long he uses the textbook he will be fine."

Ranko wondered if she did the right thing by telling to Tochiko Benji's number, the principal moves to her office and Ranko resumes her return to the cooking club, she was out for a while to get the lettuce and cabbages for the salad.

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Eri smiled pleased with her handiwork, Fuuka was released earlier that morning, after one week missing in action when her friends found the battered and clearly tortured woman they took her to their local base. Sidestepping a corpse Eri looks up to Benji. "It is quite frightening what you did to her in one week." Benji commented seeing the corpses of what Fuuka said that was a local group of private magic mercenaries.

"I can't take all the credit for that, your assistance was also responsible for that master." Eri said with a smile, it pleased him then she was happy. "From what they did for her initiation what we did for her was proof that she was in the wrong group. Just some skill and affection can do wonders."

Benji remained in silence, he counted over forty corpses since they entered on the underground base under a common looking house, all of them brandishing faces that displayed a great deal of pain and suffering before their deaths. The reason was Fuuka, Eri gave to her a small vial; in that vial a potion that turned into a scentless transparent gas in contact with air it was a powerful and effective alchemic poison of short life.

In five minutes it filled the entire complex with a deadly amount of poison killing everyone inside, Fuuka was given a shot of antidote that would protect her from the poison. Eri's so called interrogation was more like training a sex pet, in the first day Fuuka was still rebellious but the pleasure of the vibrating panties directly over her most sensitive spots for hours was breaking her resolve and previous loyalty in a steady pace.

In the second day while still bound in the cross Fuuka was as before totally dependent of Eri's care and was helpless to do anything against the blonde's actions, which then were just taking care of Fuuka's basic needs as water, food, and toilet needs, but the panties remained there and as Eri promised left her on the very edge of release for hours nearly driving her insane.

Day three was Eri taking care of Fuuka's cravings with Benji's assistance, the following days were like that too, it was surprising but even when left alone and mostly free to do anything Fuuka remained within the café, the uttermost proof of her change of alliances was the takeover of the base.

Benji shot a corpse and confirmed that the woman was dead, he did that three more times randomly and the results were the same. "Good job Fuuka." Eri said when they enter on the center of operations, the nervous system of the entire facility. "You deserve a reward."

Fuuka wearing a new black suit beamed at Eri's words and happily accepts the passionate kiss of the blonde werewolf. In normal circumstances Benji would find the scene arousing, actually he felt a pang of arousal but the whole death around him put it down, traces of his human morals.

"What is the status of this place?" Benji asked after Eri rewarded the battle wizard. "This facility isn't known by anyone outside the group." Fuuka answered seriously, she was happy by the kiss but kept herself professional before her master's master. "And no one of the group survived, it will call attention in the long run but the disposal can be done in a way that will prevent a deep investigation."

"What about equipment?" Benji asked. "We have available in this facility well supplied magic and alchemic laboratories, they aren't as advanced and equipped as from large facilities as magic schools and others military or governmental facilities, but it has the most advanced equipment available for civilians and some military surplus that was just changed for more advanced ones, second hand but very effective and advanced." Fuuka answered. "The armory is also well stocked with magical weaponry as well mundane weaponry."

"How you got your hands on them?" Benji asked; that could be important. "We have contacts that provide us with it using special ways." Fuuka answered. "What is the purpose of this place?" Benji asked. "This facility is a self sufficient minor base for independent operators; it serves as barracks, armory and training grounds. The magic and alchemic labs provides with needed potions and magical items." Fuuka explained.

Benji was pleased with it, the facility as Fuuka called it was small, not bigger than the main building of the Hinata-sou it had only two underground floors not counting a two story house above the ground. It was a valuable new asset; it was also surprising that something like that could be build under the city.

"First I want to check the armory and later we start disposing the corpses..." Benji's sentence is cut by the sound of a guitar. "Misirlou?" Eri asked confused. "I blain Dick Dale." Benji replied pulling his cell phone from his pocket, Misirlou was the ring tone that he used for unknown numbers; Ranma's was the first opening of his anime.

"Tachibana speaking." Benji said after flipping open the phone. "I hope that I am not interrupting anything important." Toshiko said in an apologetic tone. "It is me Himuro Toshiko, the principal of Ranko's school." "I remember you Himuro-san." Benji said casually. "There is anything wrong? Ranko did something bad?"

"No!" Toshiko exclaimed. "I mean I spoke to her to get your number, I hope that you don't think badly of me for doing this, but something happened and we got an opening in our staff that I think that you can fill it well." "Opening?" Benji asked confused. "You see our English teacher is pregnant and she will be taking a leave since she doesn't want the students to know about it." Toshiko explained. "And Ranko commented with me that you speak English, so I thought that you could act as a substitute teacher for us for a certain period of time. Of course we would be paying you the full teacher's salary too. You commented that you were looking for a new job that would allow you to stay in the city, so what you think? You want to teach here for six months?"

"It is a very kind offer but I don't know if I can accept it." Benji said politely. "I don't have a teaching license, I don't think that I am really fit to teach others, and my English isn't all that great." If Benji's story was real it would be an offer that he would happily take it but the story was mostly a lie and he wouldn't want to be tied to the school for at least six hours every day, he has other priorities as finding Nodoka and ramming spears up hers, Nabiki's and Kasumi's asses.

"I can take care of the license." Toshiko said cheerfully. "And if you follow the textbooks then you will be fine, conversation also helps a lot, it is only basic English not even the government expects the students to be proficient in English just it with. You don't have to answer me today, sleep with the idea and answer me before the end of the summer vacation."

Benji sighed after the line disconnected. "Anything wrong master?" Eri asked worried. "Well is hard to describe." Benji answered. "I just got a job offer." "Normally that would be a good thing." Fuuka commented. "Doing what?" "English teacher." Benji answered.

"Now I fear for the future of Japan." Fuuka commented. "You are getting punished later." Eri said to the magician. Fuuka's spirit fades as a withering flower at her mistress words. "What you will do about it master?" Eri asked to Benji. "I really don't know." Benji answered. "Based on the story that I fed her refusing will be suspicious, but the job will kill my agenda and plans."

"Any upside?" Eri asked. "Well I can keep a close eye on that fish girl that I mentioned a while ago." Benji answered. "She is a bit unwilling to take part of things but she will if needed, until now there wasn't a need for her skills." "True enough, but that kind of amphibious abilities can be handy." Eri commented. "Not much handy in an urban environment, but still handy in the right circumstances."

"Anyway I will think on that later." Benji added. "Moving to more pressing issues how we get rid of the corpses?" "You really want the details for that?" Fuuka asked. "I need to know what happens to them." Benji answered. "I don't want any trace that can be discovered and come haunt us later, total disposal of evidence."

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Chaos. That is the word that now and mostly ever rules the Hinata-sou, but in that spring afternoon the chaos was worse than ever, the cause Shinobu found a kitten by the stairs and was unable to just move away from it and brought it to the pension to feed it. Ranko saw it, actually Kaolla shoved the kitten on Ranko's face, not ready or psychologically guarded Ranko's neko-ken took over.

Ranko lashes out at Keitaro shredding the three times ronin clothes to confetti but not harming the poor creature. Naru hits Keitaro hard sending him to his room, smashing several walls on his path. "Zan-gan-ken!" Motoko shouted trying to stop the berserker girl.

Ranko just dodges and lashes out at Motoko, the swordswoman dodged but saw her left sleeve being shredded, few inches higher and her arm would be gone. The others are in panic and shrieking running around in fear. A howl makes Ranko turn her attention to her right.

Benji is standing by the entry and is looking at the orange haired girl. 'Come here kitty, it is me Benji, I can't change to human now, but you know that I am not your enemy.' Benji said on his mind hoping that Ranko will see that he won't fight her. She hissed and tackled Benji.

"Benji!" Motoko shouted seeing the mass of dark fabric, fur and bright orange hair. Ranko strongly claws Benji's shoulders with her nails, Benji pins her down with enough force to hold her there but gently enough to not hurt her. "Easy girl…" Benji whispered lowly, softly licking Ranko's face. "It is me."

His voice is enough to ensure neko-Ranko that it is Benji, the one that she cares deeply and trusts her life to, not some dangerous dog. Ranko let go of his shoulders and relaxes, Benji let go of her and Ranko stands on her fours and licks Benji's wounds in a gesture of feline care and apology.

"I don't know what happened but it seems that he has the situation under control." Kitsune commented seeing the scene. "It looks like that." Naru agreed. "But what caused that?" "Kaolla shoved the kitten that I found abandoned on the steps on Ranko-san's face." Shinobu answered. "Then she got like that."

"Neko-ken." Motoko said in horror. "I heard tales about this insanity before, but never in my lifetime I thought that I would see it." "Neko-ken?" Kitsune asked confused, Benji walks to his shared room with Ranko and neko-Ranko follows walking next to the wolf, blood paw prints on the wooden floor.

"It was said to be a legendary technique of unspeakable power but was actually a form of psychosis induced by extreme fear of cats." Motoko explained pained in seeing the bloody trail that Benji is leaving behind, Ranko wounded him badly. "In that state the victim gains virtually unsurpassed agility and strength, as well ki claws able to tear nearly everything, we saw what she did to the wall."

The girls nodded Ranko shredded the wall so badly that it left only dust behind. "But it can be reversed right?" Kitsune asked worried, not only about Ranko but her own safety. "I assume that if calmed Ranko-san will return to normal." Motoko answered. "Since normally she acts like a tomboyish girl and not a cat. We should leave her alone for a while, at least until we are sure that she is back to normal." The others nod agreeing.

In their room Benji is lying on the floor with Ranko snuggled close of him, curled in a ball pressing her back against his body, purring contently, slowly falling on sleep with the familiar warmth and heartbeat on her ears. Benji feels his wounds aching; they are still bleeding profusely, staining the floor in a growing pool of dark blood. 'She must have got an artery or something…' Benji thought feeling as if the life was draining out of him.

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Ranko wakes up feeling hot and stick, also with a familiar and not favored sensation of having fur on her mouth. "Benji I bit you again?" Ranko asked turning to the wolf. "Benji?" She doesn't get a response from him. Something cold, thick and sticky splashes when she places her hand on the floor to get leverage to sit up.

Ranko's eyes go wide in horror seeing the large pool of the now clotting blood on the floor and staining her hand, she realizes that her entire left side is drenched on blood. "Benji!" Ranko shrieked turning to the cursed man and shaking the wolf, his fur damp and sticky of blood, in several places it clotted and stick in a semi-solid mass.

"Benji wake up!" Ranko shouted in despair, she barely recalled when Kaolla shoved the cat at her. 'I…I……did this……' "Benji say something! Anything!" Ranko continued to shake the limp form of the wolf. '……it can't……c…c……can't……b……be true……he can't be cold……he can't be this cold……'

Ranko's screams attracted the attention of the other inhabitants of the pension, the first to arrive is Motoko, and without even announcing herself Motoko slams open the door. "N…no…not……not this……" Motoko stuttered seeing the large pool of blood under the kneeled Ranko and the lying wolf, in horror Motoko backpedaled from the room, images of Benji, Ranko's brother forcing her hand to burry a knife on his body vividly come back to her, as painfully vivid as if it just had happened.

"What in name of……" the words died on Naru's lips when seeing the scene. "Shinobu-chan don't come!" Naru pushed the girl away before she could see anything. "Benji!" Ranko cried, tears falling on his head, the dark fur sucking the moisture. 'Not l…..like this……not by my hand……not after everything……Benji don't die after everything that we have been through together……'

Motoko runs to the two and pushes Ranko away. Ranko fall over the blood splashing it around. Motoko gently presses her palm against Benji's muzzle. A smile traces her lips and she presses her palm against his left side. "Yes!" Motoko exclaimed biting the lid of a small pot that she produces from her kimono. "Where is it……?"

Motoko starts to run her fingers on Benji's shoulders and back, she winces feeling her index and middle fingers sinking to the second joint in two deep cuts on his shoulder. Motoko scoops a large amount of the odd colored cream inside the pot and pushes it down the cuts with a mixture of forcefulness and carefulness, smearing it all the way inside.

"Motoko-chan what you are doing?!" Naru asked in horror. "This is an old family medicine." Motoko said repeating the process on the other two cuts of that shoulder. "It is greatly effective against sword wounds and other cuts; it stops the bleeding and prevents infections."

"But he is…" "He isn't dead yet!" Motoko exclaimed cutting Naru's sentence while moving to his other side ignoring how her clothes are soaking with the blood in the floor. "His heart is still beating faintly and he is still breathing, he is likely to be in shock now. Hopefully isn't too late."

Motoko hisses. "What is wrong?!" Ranko asked worried. "You severed two arteries, one in each side." Motoko answered. "I can feel the cuts on them, it is a very odd feeling, like a soft hose with a cut on it, and I can feel it leaking." "But can be treated right?" Ranko asked with hope of seeing Benji awake and well again.

"I don't know this is only emergency care." Motoko answered rubbing more of the salve on Benji's cuts. "We should get him to a vet as soon as possible, I should have noticed it before, and there was too much blood for a superficial cut……"

Ranko runs to her bed, she grabs her cell phone and opens it with such force that breaks the device, the two halves are still connected by the cables. "Where is it……?" Ranko worriedly searches for a number on her phone contact list; Benji had given her a number to call in an emergency. "Here!" Ranko exclaimed in delight pressing the button to call it.

"Kirimiya Eri speaking." An unfamiliar voice said after two rings. "This is Tachibana Ranko." Ranko said holding the two pieces of the phone. "What is the emergency?" Eri asked knowing that Benji gave to Ranko that number to be used in case of emergencies when he was unavailable or too wounded to call her himself.

"Benji is hurt and lost too much blood." Ranko answered frantically. "Two arteries are severed and he is very cold." "Calm down." Eri said also worried, actually rushing to gather a healing potion and other needed items. "Look for a bottle filled with a purple liquid, it should be within a drawer or other container with his belongings. Make him drink that, the whole bottle, I am going there now."

Ranko's answer doesn't meet Eri since the woman hang up on her. Ranko moves to the closet and searches for the bottle on drawers where Benji keeps some of his stuff, she quickly finds an unmarked bottle with a purple liquid inside, it isn't bigger than a bottle of cologne.

"What is that?" Motoko asked seeing Ranko tearing open the cork of the bottle. "It is a medicine." Ranko answered. "At least a Kirimiya woman that Benji, my brother said to call when in an emergency said that I should give to him." "I don't trust in what I don't know." Motoko commented eying the bottle with suspicion. "But the situation is too dire to not do anything."

Ranko nodded and the two make Benji drink the liquid, not an easy feat to do with a wolf, but Ranko uses her smaller hand to force the bottle and the liquid down his throat. In less than ten minutes Eri wearing a very sober skirt suit and Fuuka wearing her usual suit arrive and are taken to Ranko's room.

Eri examined Benji carefully. "I need to take him to my clinic." Eri said to them. "Fuuka find something to use as a stretcher so we can take him to the car." Fuuka nodded and leaves with Keitaro to find a substitute for a stretcher. "What happened?" Eri asked to Ranko, taking a deep breath the cursed girl answered the question.

"Anyway I will be taking him with me, later I call to give a situation report." Eri said to them, Keitaro and Fuuka arrived with a broken door that could be used as a stretcher. "You girls have to work hard to clean up this mess, and don't forget to use bleach." Ranko nodded weakly at Eri's words.

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Ranko worked in silence in wiping away the blood on the floor, she was offered help but she wanted to do it by herself, and never before the neko-ken had caused such severe physical harm to anyone; in the worse scenarios bad scratching and large property damage.

Motoko explained what she understood from what she saw and gathered from Benji's wounds and the damage in the pension, her ki claws simply sliced everything, and in Benji's case the claws were shortened to short but lethal claws. Ranko could understand the concept and the theory of it, but couldn't understand why she lashed out on him like that.

The whole cats and dogs thing sounded just too simple, and if was like that she wouldn't have stopped in the middle of the fight, Ranko knew that something happened that made her stop, but as usual she can't remember anything of her neko period. Rinsing the blood soaked rag in a bucket of water Ranko removes the blood from it, wringing the water she tries to find some peace of mind, two hours had passed since Eri and Fuuka two women that she doesn't know took Benji to some unknown place.

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"Easy there, you lost a large amount of blood." Eri said seriously, she knew that she was out of place when commanding Benji but she is after all treating him. Benji sits up on the bed where he was lying on and holds his head with his right hand; he was feeling dizzy and faint, but in no pain.

"Magic potions are amazing." Benji commented. "Well they are indeed magical." Eri replied. "I had to make you drink one liter of rejuvenating potion to heal the cuts on your back, they got even worse after throwing warm water on you."

"Changing with wounds does tend to open more the wounds." Benji said. "What happened?" Eri asked worried. "A flawed technique called neko-ken." Benji answered. "I was as a wolf and she was a cat so she attacked before she recognized me." Eri snarls recalling Ranko but doesn't say anything knowing her place.

"But you should have called me before you lost that much blood." Eri said seriously. "The cuts were deep but the tear in the arteries were small, to cause that much blood loss you bleed for at least one hour before we arrived there."

Benji smiled in silence, he just couldn't leave Ranko when neko to call Eri, besides would be too suspicious if she suddenly arrived there to treat him. "Anyway this was close, just too close for my taste." Eri continued. "Another ten minutes untreated and you would be gone."

"How bad it is right now?" Benji asked. "You should recover the blood in a couple of days, but the wounds are gone." Eri answered. "Your wolf self for those people will stay in treatment for two months; and that in the minimum needed time to recover, in the best estimative."

Benji nodded understanding. It would be hard to him to find a way to stay there as human. "I brought the clothes." Fuuka said entering on the room holding a neatly folded set of black trousers, white shirt, black jacket, black shoes and a pair of socks. "Thank you Fuuka." Eri replied taking the clothes from the short haired mage.

"Thanks Fuuka." Benji said looking at the mage. "You are welcome." Fuuka replied with a smile, she bows and leaves the room. "She is still a bit uneasy around you." Eri commented casually. "After everything is understandable, but she is loosening up."

Benji nodded and leans back on the bed. "I will rest for another hour, wake me up then." Benji said to the blonde. "Give Fuuka a reward for the clothes." "I was planning on that." Eri replied with a smile. "I will let her know that was your idea, and sleep assured I will wake you in one hour."

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Benji returned to the Hinata-sou as human, his excuse is being contacted by Eri when in the surroundings, but finding a good excuse to be there as human will be complex. Benji was known by the girls and they don't make a fuss of him there, because of what happened they were expecting him.

When seeing Benji standing and walking on her room Ranko glomps him in the best imitation of Shampoo that she could have ever done. Benji hugs Ranko and comforts her, he wasn't angry about what happened, it was an accident if anyone was to blame about it, it should be Genma.

Ranko cries holding tightly on Benji, relief, shame, anguish and fear all melting together and overflowing as tears. Benji only soothed Ranko, it was the first time that he saw her being so open with her feelings, he knew that would be better let her cry it all out.

Ranko was a small girl, really small she barely reached his arm when he holds it straight out, Benji now realized how small Ranko really was, his body fully covered hers and he could easily wrap his arms around Ranko's shoulders, his hand and forearm more than enough to cover the distance between her shoulders.

The realization caught Benji off guard; he couldn't believe that a girl that small, as tiny as a little bird was by far stronger than he was, but he knew that was true, Ranko was physically strong but as she cries on his arms with her petite form wracked by sobs it was a certain that psychologically she wasn't as strong.

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Isolating Keitaro from the girls was complex but Benji managed to achieve that, taking him out of the pension unnoticed was even harder, but how to pressure the weak minded ronin to allow him to live in the pension was even worse. Keitaro sips on his tea waiting for Benji to say something.

Benji sighs deciding to be blunt and combo Keitaro to submission with words. "I won't stall or beat around the bush." Benji said looking at the bespectacled man. "You saw what happened today, adding that to other circumstances I think that would be better that I moved to the pension, and this is why I dragged you here. You are the landlord, manager and owner of the pension, if you say that is decided the girls doesn't have grounds to complain."

"But it is a girls' dorm." Keitaro replied. "True." Benji said placing a brown envelope over the table and sliding it to Keitaro. "But how many of the tenants other than Ranko pay the rent monthly and how many of then are behind the rent?"

Keitaro remained in silence, Kitsune leads the group of non-paying girls, it usually takes a lot of time and effort for Keitaro to collect the rent of one of the piled up months that the girl didn't paid, Kaolla occasionally paid with some odd money that Keitaro had to suffer to trade for yens most of the time the girl forgets to pay, and once in every three times Naru forgets to pay the rent.

Only Shinobu, Motoko and Ranko pay the rent monthly, Shinobu's parents deposit the money to his account every tenth, Motoko pays every seventh and Ranko paid for six months after she lived there for the first two months. Keitaro had to suffer to pay the bills of the pension and thankfully Motoko wasn't sending him through walls as often as she did; which cutted some slack on him since he didn't had to pay as many repairs in walls and the ceiling.

"And Urashima-san from what my sister told me and I saw in the pension you have grounds to sue the girls for aggression and assault several times, even if you by accident touched one of them or say their underwear when tripping by law they are the wrong ones, they hitted you before you could even explain yourself." Benji added.

"And what this envelope has to do with anything?" Keitaro asked looking at the thick envelope. "Consider it an apology for the time that Benji bit you and a sign of good faith." Benji answered. Keitaro opens the envelope and gasped at the amount of money there.

"This is far too much!" Keitaro exclaimed sure Benji did packed that particular envelope with fife hundred thousand dollars worth in yen; it was his emergency pack number three for small emergencies. "I can't take this!"

"Yes you can." Benji replied. "As far as I care you can do whatever you want to that money it is yours. Now moving to me moving to the pension, I can pay eighteen months worth of rent now, that would make a total of twenty five months split between me and Ranko."

Keitaro drooled at the idea, he never had that much money on his life; he could do things that he ever dreamt of doing. "My advice is for you to go on an operation to fix your sight." Benji said with a smile. "There is more than enough for that; trust me Urashima-san taking away your glasses will give you a huge boost in your self-esteem, you could even get yourself a cute girlfriend and go to college."

Keitaro's mind start to flash scenes of himself without glasses, his pockets filled with money and with a cute girl attached on his left arm while they walk on Todai. Keitaro drools as his mind waver in dreamland; Benji smiled seeing that Keitaro took the bait with sinker and everything.

Sure Benji would have to adapt his lifestyle once again, living fully as human would deny him pleasures as Motoko and Ranko scratching him, midday naps, biting Keitaro when he was doing something stupid or was about to do something stupid; it would also make harder for him to vanish during the day, while he doesn't give a damn about the girls he would have to let them know if he goes out and they see him leaving.

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Two hours and a visit to the bank later Keitaro in a rare moment of courage, backed up by money and Benji's reassuring presence tells to the girls about Benji moving to an empty room next to Ranko's. Naru protests loudly, very loudly. Motoko remains in silence and actually understands and accept the change, Benji was there for Ranko's sake after what happened also adding the lack of wolf Benji to guard the pension from Nodoka's spies.

Shinobu doesn't say anything, mostly because is what Keitaro wants. Kitsune protests a little but a reminder that she is with more than nine months worth of late rent to pay and that Keitaro can throw her away and sell her stuff to pay the debt is enough to the fox girl shut her protests.

Keitaro felt good, he felt manly and strong for the first time in his life, it felt good impose his will over the girls, it was his pension to manage and a businessman can cut loose sources of loss. Naru swallowed her anger internally vowing to make Keitaro pay for challenging her, but her own current debt of three months make her shut up.

Haruka is surprised with everything, it was a huge change on Keitaro's way of acting, but was a positive one, she remained neutral and even added in a lesser way to the damage of the pension, but the girls were really getting off hand with everything, the shock would be good for them.

She also heard about the neko-ken incident, she isn't as well knowledgeable as Motoko but she knows enough to know the danger of it, it was safer to have Benji around to control Ranko in case of a new attack, besides since the brunette was starting a job in Hinata he would need a place to settle down she could turn the blind eye to the situation since he was willing to pay ahead one year of worth rent.

Pleased with himself Keitaro takes Benji to the room 209 that is across the hall in front of Ranko's room, the girls other than Ranko remain in the living room. "Haruka-san you will just accept that?!" Naru asked to the older woman. "You are the housemother."

"Keitaro is the landlord and owner, Tachibana paid ahead and there are special circumstances here too." Haruka answered seriously. "As much displeases me to say this Naru if you aren't happy with this change you can always move out."

Naru feels like she has been stabbed. "I am keeping a close eye on the finances of the pension since Keitaro isn't used to this yet." Haruka added. "You think that I haven't noticed how much the expenses in repairs increased after he came? If that continued to grown we wouldn't meet the monthly expenses since some of you neglect to pay the rest."

Kitsune and Naru gasped at Haruka's words, Keitaro were gentle and Haruka was being blunt. "After Tachibana-chan moved the expenses lowered considerably, around twenty percent on the first month." Haruka continued. "After a while it lowered a total forty percent, the responsible for over fifty percent of the damage is you Naru, Kaolla only take four percent of it."

"But he glomps me, peeks on me when changing or bathing, he sees my panties!" Naru protested. "But Naru-sempai those are accidents, Ranko proved that without violence that man can learn after his mistakes and not repeat them." Motoko pointed out. "It also lessened the times that he fell or walked on me."

Naru looks at the girls feeling that everyone is against her, unable to take the pressure Naru runs away from the living room. "Kitsune I want to see the payment for at least three months of your rest debt plus this month's rent delivered before the tenth, it is time for you to take some responsibilities too." Haruka said turning to the eternal fox. "This pension is hardly giving any profit to Keitaro; don't give him more reasons for him to think in closing it and turning it back into an inn."

Kitsune remained in silence trying to think in ways to avoid paying, or working to pay her debts, but Haruka's words struck Kitsune hard, if she continues that Keitaro might actually do that if he continues on this new attitude of his, it was as much attractive as it was also worrisome.

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Even with such intervention the routine didn't changed all that much in the following days, the huge change was that Naru was reluctant in hitting Keitaro, given the fact that Keitaro confessed Naru's feelings to Seta, the announcement of Benji's arrival was the closest that Naru got of a conversation with Keitaro since then.

Motoko is the one with more of a change on her routine, in an agreement Benji and Motoko decided to train together for one hour; mostly it was a maintenance fee over the secret.

Later Kitsune summons the other girls to the attic for an emergency meeting. "We have to deal with this new situation." Kitsune said seriously. "This new dictatorship can't go on, they are killing our economy with this over excessive rent. We must perform a coup."

"Kitsune you are blowing this situation out of proportion." Motoko said seriously. "The rent is in the same value that it was for the last year, it isn't a dictatorship but a new policy of low tolerance against unjustified violence and skipping payment in the rent. Wait a second there, you are proposing this because you can't or don't want to raise the money to pay your debts."

"Urgh!" Kitsune exclaimed as Motoko pinpointed the truth behind the emergency meeting. "Shinobu-chan and I always paid our rents before or on the day of the collect." Motoko added. "We have no problem with this new policy, in matter of fact we support it, the money is being well used to needed repairs around the pension as the broken faucets and other needed repairs."

Shinobu nodded agreeing. "It is your neglect that caused your debt to become so big." Motoko continued. "Motoko-chan you don't have to be that harsh." Naru said to the younger girl. "Sure Kitsune is the only one to blame about her debts and lazy lifestyle, but this new policy isn't something that Keitaro thought by himself. Ranko's brother was the one that pointed it out to him and gave to Keitaro the backbone for that."

"It is indeed true." Motoko replied. "But who are the ones wrong in this matter Narusegawa-senpai? The ones who took advantage of the spineless manager, or the person that pointed out to the spineless manager that he could stand by himself? Urashima is running a business here; if there are sources of losses in here he can and must cut them off."

Naru and Kitsune swallow uncomfortably about the cutting part. "He is blackmailing us!" Kitsune exclaimed. "He told you to stop seducing him for stalling the rent or he would file a sexual harassment process on you; and against Naru-senpai an aggression one, if she continues her usual habit of hitting him first and not asking questions later." Motoko pointed out.

"Why you are siding with him?" Naru asked seriously. "I am on the right side on this issue." Motoko answered. "You are the wrong ones, we live on his pension; you thought that everything could continue as it was without retribution?" "Yes." Naru and Kitsune answered as one.

Motoko sighed. "Anyway I will take a bath since I am still sweaty from training." Motoko said while standing up. "Give up on this coup idea, if a civil war breaks in the pension I will be in the old government side and trust me on this matter girls, even if I was in your side, in a battle between the factions we would lose."

"Why that?" Naru asked more curious than scared. "Two answers, each one is a word of five letters." Motoko answered leaving the room. "I might be good but I am not that good yet." Naru and Kitsune frown confused. "You caught a meaning?" Kitsune asked to Naru.

"No." Naru answered. Shinobu smiled uncomfortably. "Motoko-senpai meant the two Tachibana siblings." Shinobu said to them, she had understood Motoko's words. "Benji and Ranko." Naru and Kitsune look at each other confused, sure the number of letters in the two names matched but there isn't a way that the two were stronger than Motoko. True, in sheer skill and talent Motoko surpasses Benji in both, but Benji fights dirty and has more than one ways of fighting in his arsenal, and Ranko, well she is Ranko.

In another place Benji sighed. 'Well I had foreseen that Kitsune wouldn't take these new changes so easily, Naru too. But having Motoko as a defender is a surprise, sure she is honor bound and serious, but I thought that she would prefer the old regimen…' Benji runs his hand on his hair. 'Old regimen? God I am thinking in lines of Kitsune's talk.'

"I think that is the first time that I ever seen your eyes." Motoko commented looking at Benji's face. "Normally you hair covers them, how you see?" "You get used." Benji answered with a smile. "Anyway Urashima's new attitude bothered Kitsune and Naru." Motoko said in a more serious tone. "Kitsune wanted to start a coup."

"She is just too lazy to accept the fact that she needs to work around ten months to one year worth of late rent." Benji commented, Motoko nods agreeing. "However in one thing I agree with her, without your intervention Urashima wouldn't have done this." Motoko said. "Why you care?"

"I don't think that is right for him to be abused, beaten, tricked and used by them." Benji answered. "How you would feel if I treated you as you girls used to treat him?" Motoko nodded understanding. "True it was partly interest of my part." Benji added. 'Well it was mostly interest of my part.' He corrected himself. "But I also think that is unfair to treat him like that, I wouldn't want to be treated like that."

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Benji licks his lips, moistening them. Holding his loot he enters in the deserted kitchen, it is three in the morning, no one other than him is awake and he had very good reasons to be awake. With a large metal can in his left hand and two bottles in the right Benji scans the counter seeking for a funnel.

Finding one Benji sets down the can and the bottles in the counter, filling one of the bottles with half of the content of the other Benji is pleased to see both of them half full, he opens the can and grabs a handful of the black stone like contents, crushing it over the funnel letting the small bits fall on it and then in the bottle Benji continues to crush the black substance over the crystal clear liquid until the bottle is once again filled, then he repeats the process on the other.

End of the chapter eight:

Author explanation corner:

Benji's cell phone number: A random number that I typed using the arrangement of phone numbers here in Brazil.

Neko-ken incident, Keitaro's sudden growth of a spine and Haruka's support: I felt a need to throw human shaped Benji in the pension in a more frequent basis, also a Neko-ken incident as well Ranko coming to meet Benji's subordinates needed to happen, so I threw everything together in one big incident.

Benji is being affected by his long periods as a wolf, the lack of concern about wounds and the ease to accept death comes from the animal side. Let's admit after everything that happened to Keitaro why he wouldn't jump at the chance to make it all stop? Haruka supported the decision because it benefited the pension and her cousin/nephew; it also means more money into the pension's account.

Fuuka's desertion: I won't detail the whole submission process (I will leave that to your imagination to fill the gaps), Eri managed to fully seduce and become Fuuka's mistress by use of her techniques. Added to a certain incident on the group to be named later Fuuka didn't really was against killing everyone of the group.

More explanations bellow the extras

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Nodoka frowned, taking over Nabiki's work in searching Benji and Ranma was very troublesome in her condition, but she doesn't trust in anyone else with that task, even her most reliable underlings doesn't have the same wits as Nabiki. Sayuka Nodoka's assistant continues to type the search parameters that the bedridden woman dictates.

"Nodoka-sama, it wouldn't be more effective to do a comparative photographic search?" Sayuka asked to the older woman. "Comparing pictures in the databank to pictures of documents of government institutions of the countries suspected to be their hideouts?"

"It would take far too much time." Nodoka answered. "We are speaking in finding two people in databanks with millions if not billions of pictures of people there." "Yes, however eventually they would need to establish 'official' identities for them in whatever country they are hiding on." Sayuka continued. "And if we locate those new identities we can narrow down the search on that country and also locate them by credit card use or customs if traveling with those identities. The current search might take years and may not bear any fruits; the image comparison will offer at the very least a lead of subject's one real identity if not giving us a clue of his location."

"I already ordered a search on the customs for travelers of the age and sex of the subjects; we still haven't got any response." Nodoka replied. "Nabiki had already started a similar search, but you can implement more details on it if you wish, we shall use any and every method available to locate them." Sayuka nodded at the command. "And I want a report on the CB-19, full status and development report." Nodoka added. "I want to know when it will be operational."

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Motoko looks at Benji confused, she can't let him win, her pride requires her to defeat him on at least that, however it wasn't about skill but sheer luck. "C-4." Benji said. "No!" Motoko exclaimed as Benji calls the right coordinate. "You sank my last submarine."

Benji grinned, the prize was his to take, and he so liked of the prize. "I told you to not bet with him Motoko." Ranko said with a sympathetic smile. "What she lost?" Keitaro asked. "Well if she won, I was supposed to do certain things for her." Benji answered casually. "And if she lost?" Keitaro asked as Motoko cries and blushes.

"I gain a Motoko's cosplay day." Benji answered. "Any day that I choose she will be my personal servant in any cute, frilly and feminine costume that I want her to wear." "You were not supposed to win this." Motoko muttered annoyed, she would keep up her word but she wouldn't like it. "I was supposed to win this, as I won in the quiz." "And I won in the black-jack." Benji replied. "And now with this the victory is mine."

Motoko pouts but agrees, she really shouldn't have made a best of three competition. Benji's phone rings and he picks it up. "Yes." Benji said after a moment. "What? I hate that place; it can't be in somewhere else?" Benji sighed annoyed. "Fine then, I will be there in one hour."

"What happened?" Ranko asked. "A job meeting." Benji answered. "A friend arranged it for me." Benji stands up and turns to Motoko. "Don't worry Motoko I will charge the cosplay day another day." He said with a smile. "You can get used to the idea until then." Motoko nodded a bit relieved that she wouldn't have to dress any kind of costume on that day.

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Benji sighed annoyed once again, he hated being in Juuban, as far as he knows a pack of sailor suited pretty soldiers could jump out from nowhere and he will be caught in the middle of a magic battle, he already has far too many problems on his hands without adding them.

'You know one day I will have to speak with her.' Benji mused recalling a certain incident before things went wrong in Nerima. 'Sooner or later we will meet again and if I use what we have passed before that happening things might end well.' Sighing again Benji looks at his watch. 'Shiaki is late.'

"I knew that I should have brought that book." Benji muttered annoyed. "At the very least I could beat the crap out of her with it." "I don't think that you would manage to do it." Shiaki said walking around Benji. "I am still far better than you." "Why you set a time when you will be going to be late?" Benji asked annoyed, he could be having a better day picking up costumes for the soon to come Motoko's cosplay day.

"Because I don't like to wait." Shiaki answered flatly. "Anyway let's get moving I am still not done with my shopping." "If you called me to help you shopping forget about it." Benji said seriously. "I have things to do." "The shopping is totally unrelated to why I called you." Shiaki shot back.

"Then why you called me?" Benji asked. "Because things are heating up." Shiaki answered pulling Benji by the arm. "Nodoka's organization felt the heat and started to fire back, they are hunting organizations because your attacks to their key staff members, they believe that the hits are being ordered by a rival organization."

"Then it is good for us." Benji commented. "In the short term yes." Shiaki replied. "But eventually they will discover that it wasn't the organizations behind the attacks and then the organizations might group together to find the common enemy that started a war between them, and that means you."

Shiaki had a point, that smoke screen would only last for a while and eventually they would start to look for other suspects and eventually they would suspect of him. "I can't just leave them alone and the organization is far too big to wipe out in one strike, at least now." Benji said seriously. "Even with tactical charges and killings it is impossible."

"You can lay low for a while." Shiaki replied. "They might be still looking for you and Ranma but eventually they will have to decrease the importance of the hunt, after a certain period of time without any clues the trail will be so cold that they will stop looking."

"I somehow doubt it." Benji said. "Even if they lessened the intensity they would still search and let's admit Shiaki eventually they are bound to find us, I don't want to live my life as a fugitive." Shiaki can understand his feelings, living always looking over his shoulder, avoiding people, fearing cameras, and much more, it wasn't a good life.

"And we are living in a world where digital items are blooming, even today digital cameras and cell phones with cameras are being sold to the public, it is getting even harder to avoid surveillance with so many new means of spying coming forth." Benji added. "Eventually they would get across a picture with me or Ranma on it, or they would see us in news or something, unless we hide in the middle of the nowhere to avoid detection killing them all is the only way to end the hunt."

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Ranko looks at Riko and Tomomi. "Once again why we are here?" Ranko asked to them, she didn't like of the idea of shopping with them, especially swimsuit shopping. "Because summer vacation is around the corner." Riko answered. "Time to go to the beach, to the pool, find some nice boys."

"I am not interested in boys." Ranko deadpanned. "You are interested in girls?" Tomomi asked with a blush. "I am not interested in anything." Ranko replied embarrassed. "Still is a good chance to show off." Riko said. "You are forgetting that I don't like to show off?" Ranko asked.

"Now that you mention I did." Riko commented. "I think that I still have a swimsuit from the last time that I went to the beach." Ranko added. "A one piece." "Then get a new one piece." Riko replied. "It is a new year, so get a new one, I am sure that you grew since then."

"Now that you mention…" Ranko murmured recalling that her breasts indeed grew since then, with a sigh she looks around. "I want something simple." She said scanning the colorful racks. "Something black or in dark colors." "You should pick something better than that." Riko replied. "But your skin is quite light, dark colors will contrast well."

"Ranko-san!" A familiar voice called the orange haired girl. "Shinobu?" Ranko said turning at the direction of the voice. "Motoko?" "Aoyama-senpai!?" Tomomi and Riko exclaimed seeing the tall girl. "Ranko you really know the star of our school kendo club?!"

"We live in the same pension." Ranko said to them. "But I thought that you two saw me hanging out with her in school in several occasions." "Still…" Riko murmured. "What you two are doing here?" Ranko asked to Shinobu and Motoko. "Probably the same that you are doing." Shinobu answered. "Looking for swimsuits. Summer is coming and Haruka-san told us that she will need our help in the beach tea house, so we need new swimsuits."

Motoko nodded agreeing. "Sadly I outgrew my old swimsuit." Motoko said with a hint of annoyance. "But I suppose that is the nature's way, I am still growing after all." "Yeah." Ranko agreed with a nod. "My old one is too tight on the bust too." "I didn't mean just that." Motoko said embarrassed. "I grew taller too."

"Well I just got more breast." Ranko said annoyed. "I hardly reach on Benji's shoulders height when standing up straight; if I tiptoe I get on his chin." "Well your brother is tall." Shinobu commented, Benji was taller than everyone in the pension, taller than everyone that she knew.

"It must be good be that tall." Ranko commented. "Not really." Motoko replied. "I am shorter than he is and sometimes if I don't pay attention I might hit my head on some lower things hanging on the ceiling or decorations. In some cars and buses I don't get enough leg space to get comfortable."

"It does sound inconvenient." Tomomi commented. "But being too short is also troublesome. You can't reach things in high places, you might not see over a crowd." "Both had disadvantages." Motoko said. "Well I think that I will try this one." Ranko said getting a swimsuit, a one piece with short sleeves and high collar. "It doesn't expose much of me and looks nice."

"It is too plain." Riko commented. "I kind of like it." Motoko said looking at Ranko's choice. "It is on my area of liking. But I don't like of that dark gray color." "I think that is graphite." Tomomi commented. "Still I prefer something not on the gray area." Motoko replied.

"Well I want something sports like." Riko commented. "I might not have as much chest as Ranko but I still need good support." "You certainly are on the large side too." Tomomi commented. Shinobu sighed; she is the flatter one of the group. "So spoke the former number one bust of the class." Riko teased. "Your rule wasn't challenged until Ranko transferred in." Ranko chuckled at the duo's light barbs on the other.

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Left alone in Juuban Benji reflects on the course of action to follow, more attacks to Nodoka's organization might end badly for him in the long run, even thought he doesn't really believe that he will live that long, but he had to have some hope. 'Maybe a decisive strike, something daring and that would make her look to a direction that I want her to look.' Benji thought walking around in a casual pace.

The idea wasn't all that bad but making it happen wouldn't be easy and he would need to think hard in where to make them look at and at what. 'In days like this I really wish that I had remained in bed that morning.' Benji thought with a sigh. 'But then if that happen nothing of what I experienced would have happened and there are things that I don't want to cast off so lightly.'

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Turning on a corner Benji looks around confused, the busy Tokyo's street was deserted and more than that it was in the middle of a blizzard, but it was almost summer and just ten minutes earlier the heat was intense. "I am so not dressed for this!" Benji exclaimed holding his jacket closed, the snow and wind flailing on his face. "I so hate this cold! Why my grandmother loves it?!"

Running with a thick layer of snow on the ground is hard. 'This isn't going as well as I wanted to…' Benji thought frustrated at his slow advancement any shelter would do it but everything was either locked shut or covered by snow. "No choice but…" Benji muttered willing his change after starting the stealth technique.

With a pleased sigh Benji nodded in full war form. 'A thick fur coat is quite handy in moments like this.' Benji thought for the first time happy with his curse, the fur kept him warm and the war form was able to easy move in two legs or four 'legs', and his mobility was largely improved by it.

'Now what in name of everything that is holy caused this?' Benji thought while running on the storm, whatever it is can't be good, it calls too much attention and since he is in the area that isn't good for him. 'If Nodoka's interest comes to this area eventually she might check on Hinata, I can't let that happen.'

Benji can't keep track of time inside the storm, the snow as well the harshness of the environment makes hard to judge how far he is moving and for how long, as far he can see everything is white. Hearing some screams above the storm Benji moves at the direction, he can't make up what they say but was the first sign of life that he had contact with since he found himself on the storm.

'You know what I should go back now.' Benji thought seeing nine young women wearing skimpy and revealing sailor uniforms with miniskirts in different colors. 'Yeah going home sounds really good now. I don't want get tangled with them.' Benji starts to back away slowly in his human form, no need to let them see him on war form; it could lead to several troubles later.

Benji falls forward as something heavy impacts on his back, the impact make him slide on the snow. "What the fuck hit me?" Benji cursed spitting snow from his mouth; looking behind him he sees a wounded senshi. 'Fuck…nine possible senshis and had to be Haruka…' Benji thought seeing the badly hurt senshi.

'Her hair is soaked with blood, head damage, some cuts on the uniform too.' Benji thought checking on her. 'Bad ones, no choice…' Benji gently holds the senshi's shoulders and cradles her head while pulling a small bottle from his pocket. Removing the cap of a healing potion bottle Benji carefully takes it to her lips. "Come on drink it." Benji said to the semi conscious senshi.

"Hurry, this will help you, losing that much blood might kill you." Benji told her, but the senshi is refusing to drink. 'I don't know if I should get frustrated or happy about this.' Benji thought while taking the bottle to his lips and taking the liquid on his mouth. Forcing her lips open Benji makes Haruka drink the potion thought a kiss, Benji only break is when sure that she swallowed the whole potion. 'Good it started to work.' Benji smiled seeing the cuts closing. 'The head wound will take more time but it shouldn't be dangerous.'

Looking at the direction where the senshis should be fighting he doesn't see anyone coming at their direction, not a good sign, if they couldn't spare any of them to check on the hurt Haruka the battle must be really hard. Benji sighed frustrated. 'So much for not wanting to meet any senshis.' Benji thought taking out his jacket and wrapping Haruka on it.

The uniform clearly wasn't protecting her much from the wind and cold, she was getting cold quickly, carrying the now sleeping senshi Benji moves closer to the battle. 'I really wanted to change to war form…' He thought shivering with the cold. 'Come on any kind of shelter will be good, a car or an uncovered window; I can't just leave her in the snow to freeze her ass out.'

But he can't find any as the snow level continues to rise. He can see some odd creature that looks like an ice monster covered with some whitish fur, around it the senshis are struggling. 'Cleary their uniforms can't fully protect them from the cold and the wind.' Benji mused seeing how the senshis are shivering from the cold, what prevented them from fighting with their fullest potential.

'Okay no one noticed me.' Benji thought kneeling on the snow, resting Haruka against him. 'I think that I got something from the base that should work.' Benji thought while checking on his hidden space pockets. 'Assault rifle…saw-off shotgun…machine pistols…ice pick… ice pick? Why I stuffed an ice pick here? Whatever…chainsaw… disk saw…mini-gun…M60 machine gun…fuck I really didn't packed it? YES! RPG! I knew that I brought some of those!'

Benji quickly readies the LAW to fire making sure to point the right end towards the monster. 'Okay the senshis are far from it, I know for sure that there isn't anyone behind me, so it is safe to shoot.' Benji thought before pressing the trigger, with a smile of satisfaction of a generation raised on action movies that had large explosion with rocket launchers Benji sees the rocket impacting straight on the monster's chest and delivering the destruction that was created to do.

'Well it wasn't as big as I was expecting but it was good.' Benji thought seeing the sizable crater on the creature's chest. Sailor Moon uses the moment and attacks the creature with one of her many 'final attacks', Benji smiled seeing the storm fading. 'What!? What I do? What I do!?' Benji frantically looks around. 'I need to run!' Then he sees his jacket on Haruka, he won't have time to take it back. Benji bolts out of there and runs as far as he can before he is seen.

The senshis find Haruka rested against a wall with the jacket on her, Benji wasn't anywhere near there and the snow was fully gone taking away the footsteps that he left behind, Makoto and Michiru take each one of Haruka's arms and leave the street knowing that soon everything will be back to normal and the street will be crowded again.

Benji let out a long breath, he was sure that he weren't followed and he was already inside the crowd so even if he was the senshis can't locate him. 'Damn this really can't be good.' Benji thought walking in a normal pace. 'At least there wasn't anything that can lead them to me in the jacket. Hopefully it will be the first and last time that I see them.'

Benji snorted. "Who I am kidding?" Benji muttered annoyed. "Based on every rule of anime, manga and games, and as well Murphy's law I will be seeing them not only again but very often. After this I need a drink I wonder if Eri has anything good." Then Benji smiled. "I don't need visit her. I have the Salmiakkikossu that I made last Monday. Well time to drink and savor that, after all anything with Salmiakki would taste good."

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Benji sighed in pleasure after taking another large pull from his bottle. "If I knew that it was this good I would have made it before." He said looking at the sky. "And would have started drinking it without a reason." "Now if you did that I would really lose the respect that I have for you." Motoko said seriously. Benji cranes his neck and looks at on his sight the upside down Motoko. "Any excuse for drinking this soon?" She asked with a hint of disapproval on her voice.

"I have nine reasons." Benji answered. "Nine strong reasons, but there are others one that are older." "Now Motoko let him drink in peace." Kitsune said with a grin. "Besides I want to taste whatever that is. Let me have some." Kitsune showed to Benji her glass. Benji rolls over and now over his chest he pours some of the now tar colored liquid on it. "Now be careful because it…"

"PLUHIUHARGGHhhh!!!" Kitsune choked, spitted and tried to remove the taste from her mouth at the same time. "What in the name of alcohol you did to that poor liquor!?" She shouted in horror. "I added Salmiakki in high proof Finnish vodka." Benji answered with a smile. "It is so good that hurts."

"You ruined a good vodka!" Kitsune shouted. "Not in my opinion." Benji replied. "What is Salmiakki?" Motoko asked confused. "It is a very strong liquorice pepper and a salt called ammonium chloride." Benji answered casually. "I really love the stuff, and I saw in the internet a recipe of a cocktail that is basically Salmiakki dissolved in vodka."

Motoko frowned a bit at the idea of a candy with salt and pepper filling but tastes are unique and change from person to person. "Anyway it is too soon to be drinking that much." Motoko said. "Especially something as strong a vodka." "I needed some cheering up and this mix gave to me." Benji replied. "Not that I was going to drink it all once."

"And how much you drank?" Motoko asked. "Two whole glasses." Benji answered. "Far from my limit but enough for today." "Good to see that you know when to stop." Motoko commented eying the fleeing fox girl who is running for some mouthwash. "What happened that made you decide to drink?" Motoko asked worried. "Resuming a long story." Benji said standing up. "I bumped on some people that I rather avoid."

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Author explanation corner take 2:

Salmiakki: Exactly what I described in the story, and yes I love that stuff, I have an uncle who lives in Finland and he brought some for us back home when he came visit, it took two or three of them to me begin to like it but now I love the stuff. Now I am seriously thinking in asking him to send some to me and pay him later.

The cocktail is exactly what is described in the story too, originally it was going to be drunk later but in the Sailor Moon crossing that I added it felt that it should happen then. After all Benji really didn't want to meet the senshis.

Sailor Moon crossover Take 2: In a review was questioned if I was going to make it a Sailor Moon one, when I started there was a possibility to do so, and maybe when I finish this I might make a whole new spin where instead of going to the Hinata-sou Benji and Ranma stumble on the senshis. Anyway recently I thought in adding a Sailor Moon twist on this story, I still haven't decided if it will be part of the main story or will be a separate branch.

Blizzard in deserted Tokyo: New enemy means new powers for the enemies, so in this new setting the enemies create a kind of barrier that isolates an area around them, the area still exists and people move in the original one, but the isolated area is a 'copy' overlapping the original one, normal people can't enter on the area since the 'vanish' from it. For examples of similar effects look at Suzumiya Haruhi and Pretty Cure.

Motoko's cosplay day: Just a random event that I made that resulted on that, Motoko wanted lessons in ninja techniques and armed (firearms) combat training, as well few others, but she didn't had much more leverage to ask for that based in her previous agreement with Benji, so she made a bet, if she won Benji would teach her, if she lost Benji could decide on his prize and that was the Motoko's cosplay day.


	9. Hellish night

Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic. This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Love Hina I don't own or any of the characters of those shows. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed: Benji Himura.

This story begins in the Ranmaverse somewhere in the middle of the events of the chapter thirteen, actually between the release of Hinako and the events of the Gamble King events.

In the Love Hina timeline in the manga it stars after the chapter twenty six but before the chapter twenty seven.

This is a crossover so both stories casts or at least part of them will interact and there will be changes on both stories and on the plotline of Outcast Ranma. For anyone following the main story this scenario doesn't follow the same 'timeline' from the main story, it works on the line that timeline show on the story is the original one.

"Text" Talked sentences.

'Text' Thoughts.

-Text- Sounds effects.

(Text) Talked sentences in a foreign language as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

**Text**: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

_Text_: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

"_Text"_ Alteration in the voice, not in the tone but the voice itself.

Author warning (just a heads up for you esteemed readers): This is a **long** chapter with a total of 43 pages counting the disclaimer, extras, story and everything else. Long than all the previous chapters, so get yourself comfortable, grab some snacks and drinks, go to the restroom too, all done? Washed your hands? Now please relax and enjoy the chapter.

Chapter nine: Hellish night

"I am back." Benji said in a tired voice as he enters on the pension, all those sleepless hours of intense activity are killing him. "You don't look all that good." Motoko commented seeing the dark rings under Benji's eyes. "My life is everything but easy." Benji replied.

Ranko looks at him seriously, unlike Motoko Ranko was keeping a close track of Benji's absences and comparing to deaths of certain people, over sixty percent of the times that Benji was out someone died, gunned down, exploded, poisoned, stabbed, mysterious accidents and several other reasons.

"That is raw!" Shinobu exclaimed as Benji starts eating a raw fresh sardine with pulls of soy sauce between bites. "That much salt isn't good for you." Motoko said seriously. "At least sit down to eat." "If I sit I won't stand up." Benji answered. "After I finish this I will collapse in my bed and kill anyone who disturbs me before the New Year."

"Eeeeppp!" Shinobu whimpered scared. "You also shouldn't eat the bones." Motoko pointed out. "I need more calcium on my diet." Benji replied. "You have an answer for everything don't you?" Motoko asked putting her hands on her hips." "Not for everything." Benji answered. "I don't know what kind of panties you are wearing."

Motoko blushed embarrassed. "And that is how it will remain." Motoko muttered embarrassed. Benji munches the last bit of the fish and walks to his room. "You know what your brother is up to?" Kitsune asked to Ranko. "He was out for two nights in a row."

"No idea." Ranko partially lied. "But I do think that he meant what he said about who disturbs him." "I don't know what impress me more, the fact that he said what he said to Motoko and walked or the fact that he ate a whole raw fish with bones without leaving any trash behind and giving a whole new view to sashimi." Kitsune commented. "I think that walking out after saying that to Motoko-chan is more impressive." Naru commented. "Why that Motoko-chan?"

"He just teased me." Motoko replied. "No need to hit him because of a playful barb." "But if was me you would send me to the other district." Keitaro pointed out. "Because you are you and Benji is Benji." Motoko said seriously. "I respect Benji and only tolerate you. There is a big difference."

Keitaro sighed inwardly; he had that coming when he said that. Ranko moves to her room, she would check the news and get an update on her body count; she will need to be accurate when going after him. Benji had acted on his own for far too long for her liking; she had nothing against him killing on self-defense or when protecting someone else, but the senseless killing spree that he is performing she is totally against it, she can't see the honor or reason for that.

Benji throws his jacket on the floor, it lands with a heavy metallic impact, taking out a shoulder holster with his Enfield and placing next to the bed Benji throws himself on his bed, he could sleep with his belt, knives and clothes on, he had plenty of practice on that anyway.

"Now that has to pack a even more serious damage on them." Benji muttered covering his eyes with his right arm. "And leaving a signature of B.A.L.D.E. will throw them out even more looking for an organization that doesn't exist. Now if I manage to catch enough sleep I will be able to waste the next target on next Friday."

Nightwish's 'She is my sin' song plays from his trousers' pocket, Benji sighed and fished his cell phone from his pocket. "You have thirty seconds before I get mad and decide to punish you Eri." Benji said annoyed, 'She is my sin' is Eri's ring on his phone.

A meek 'Eeekkk!' comes from the other side. "I just wanted to check if you aren't hurt." Eri nervously exclaimed. "I saw the footage from the news I got worried when the bomb went out and you hadn't left the house." "I escaped by the sewers." Benji said. "Anything else? I want to sleep until I get tired of sleeping."

"Uh…Friday's hit is still on?" Eri asked. "Yes, get the gear ready, the declaration of intent too, print it and then destroy the printer." Benji answered. "And pack only Russian weapons and ammo." "Yes sir." Eri replied. "Have a nice sleep." "I will." Benji replied. "See you Friday."

He gets her reply before turning off the phone and taking the battery from it before dropping it next to the bed. With a long tired sigh Benji turns on the bed and buries his head on the pillow. Half an hour later even more annoyed than before Benji muttered. "Why can't I pass out…?"

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On the roof Keitaro muses about his life, for him things are starting to improve, no one was hitting him, and at least Naru and Kaola greatly diminished the amount of their abuse against him, a huge development for him, Motoko wasn't threatening him as often as she did, at least not with words, sometimes she looked at him with such scary eyes that he would prefer the sword and worded threats.

Keitaro doesn't know how to mark the lack of trips, accidents and walking in the bath with girls in, not that he managed to get excellent views, he normally caught glances before being send to another district, but he definitely could live without catching a glance of the girls if it meant a painless life.

Sure he still screw up things, the confession that he did 'for' Naru was one of those, other than falling, tripping, hitting things and causing damage when avoiding Naru his luck improved a lot. 'I wonder if it will last.' Keitaro thought, it was too good to be true, he had more money than he ever had thanks to Benji and Ranko, Benji even repaid the damage caused by Ranko during the Neko-ken incident.

'Now I wonder how he gets that much money and decided on living with his sister on this crappy pension.' Keitaro mused, Benji easily dished out a total of seven hundred thousand dollars or seventy five millions and one hundred seventy six thousand and five hundred yens. 'With that amount he could buy the pension and still have enough to buy a house or two.'

Tapping his chin with his index finger Keitaro makes some plans. 'Mmmm…with that money I should be able to buy some houses in nice parts of the city, and if I lease then to someone else I might get a stable income.' Keitaro mused. 'Sure I suck on administration but if Haruka-obasan helps me for a percentage things might go well.'

"Keitaro." Haruka called looking over him. "Sorry!" Keitaro exclaimed nearly falling off the roof. Haruka is surprised for a moment but quickly returns to her usual self. "Why you are apologizing?" She asked. "Reflex action." Keitaro answered chuckling nervously. "But I was thinking about talking to you."

Haruka frowned lightly, that was a rare thing. "Talking about what?" She asked seriously. "Well since Benji-san paid his and Ranko-chan's rent in advance for one year, plus the damage that she caused on the pension when berserking and a fee for the times that the dog bit me." Keitaro explained. "I was thinking in using that money before Kitsune learns about it and tries to take the money as she did when 'looking for me' in Kyoto."

Haruka nodded understanding; it was a reasonable fear knowing Kitsune. "And what have you thought?" She asked. 'Let's see if you have any of grandma's business sense on you.' she added to herself. "I thought in buying some land and houses." Keitaro answered. "I have enough to get at least two places in a good area and still have enough to run the pension. Then we rent out the house or building to someone else and take a lease."

Haruka nodded understanding, it wasn't the brightest or the most profitable plan in the world but was stable, in long term the investment would pay itself up and then start giving profit; it wasn't the kind of investment that she would do but is a good one anyway.

"And since I am not too good in accounting I thought I asking to you help me out with this." Keitaro added. "Giving you thirty percent of the profit." 'Now that isn't a bad cipher.' Haruka thought, sure it wasn't much but was steady money coming in with out working much for it. 'If charging seven hundred thousand yens of total rent by month, risking forty hundred as capital return and keeping the remaining thirty thousand as profit we would get two parts one being two hundred and ten thousand for Keitaro and ninety nine thousands for me, enough for Keitaro pay his college and still have money to expend, and enough for me to not worry much in paying the bills.'

"Well it isn't a bad idea; let's give it some more thought later." Haruka said seriously. "Now for the reason that I came here. I need your help in the beach tea house." "But I have to study and work for Seta-san." Keitaro protested. "Study during the nights and I already spoke to Seta and he agreed in giving you some time off." Haruka replied. "You already decided on it!" Keitaro exclaimed. "But we don't need money!"

"Unless you want to expend your money in the pension." Haruka said. "The profit there helps to keep the pension. We will be leaving on Saturday, pack your stuff." Keitaro sighed annoyed. 'And here is where my luck runs out…' He thought defeated.

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Benji sighed annoyed; he wasn't anywhere as rested as he wanted to, but after twenty hours of rest, not all of them of sleep he is too annoyed to try to sleep. After cleaning his room and hiding all the stuff that he shouldn't own he leaves the bedroom with his destination set.

Checking on the bathroom and finding it empty Benji takes a quick shower, he doesn't trust on taking a long bath in the hot spring, besides as a Brazilian he is used to shower, a clean set of clothes later Benji marches to the kitchen to raid whatever beef they have on stock.

Benji write down few things on the grocery list that Shinobu left on the fridge on a magnet and leave some money there to pay for them. "I should get a mini bar on my rooms." Benji muttered while munching some raw steak. "I wonder why it is so quiet here. I didn't met anyone, heard anything. Did the apocalypse happen while I was sleeping? No I am not that lucky."

While considering the wisdom of an Evil Dead 3 overslept ending reaction Benji walks around the pension. 'It is Thursday, is way pass noon and no live soul around.' Benji thought casually. 'I wonder if they left for something.'

Benji moves back to his room, in the past months he had so little true free hours as human that he no longer knows what to do to relax. "I guess that I should get things ready for tomorrow." Benji murmured, the hit would be complex, by far more complex and troublesome than others, all the others were more regular assassinations, but this one was more in the line of suicide terrorism. Changing into his casual clothes Benji gets ready to leave the pension.

'You know something isn't quite right.' Benji thought while putting on his shoes in the entry. 'Sure it is still morning and it means that half of the girls are in school but even Kitsune, Naru and Keitaro not being around is very odd, and not even a sign of Tama. Well if it truly was something bad I would have heard some noise.'

Benji barely walked ten steps away when something impacts hard on his left side. The momentum of the attack was so powerful that Benji flies several meters away before hitting hard on the ground and bouncing on it as he still moves with the power of the strike.

Benji lands face down, stunned with the force of the blow, forcing himself up with his hands as a large amount of blood flows out of his mouth. '…I…k…kno…w…this…' Benji couldn't even think straight. 'This…feeling…i…is…isn't…unfamiliar…' Shaking his head Benji tries to clear his mind but his whole body is shouting on pain.

'This shattering force…the power above a demolition…ball…' Benji gasped for air, unable to breath because the impact and the blood flowing from his lips. 'This isn't good…something broke…' The author of the attacks walks toward Benji.

"So it seems that I finally got your attention." Ranko said in an emotionless tone. "It was kind of hard waiting to get a day like this. A day that everyone would be out, it was easy to fake something, it is impressive how quickly everyone took the excuse of menstrual colic."

Benji winces as blood from his scalp reaches his eyes; he knew that he got badly hurt with that single strike. "I think that I know why you are killing those people." She continued. "Why you keep doing it by yourself? Why I can't help you? I can do it; I am strong enough to do everything that you do."

Benji falls over the puddle of blood that came from him; he couldn't support his weight any longer. "Why you have to go and fight all by yourself?" Ranko asked now over Benji, not that she was going to get a reply. 'Why I wasn't send to an anime where countless eager to please maids would be trying to fulfill any and all of my needs?' Benji thought lying on a pool of his own blood. 'I think that there was an anime like that, not so sure since I didn't watched it…not like losing all this blood is going to help my memory, then it could be worse I could have landed on Dragon ball, any of them, where with one fart Goku can destroy the earth…'

Then Ranko starts to get worried, she intended to hit Benji hard, but just enough to show what she can do and not kill him. "Benji?" Ranko asked meekly leaning against his body. "Benji did I hit you too hard?" She holds on his shoulders and roll him over, she never saw Benji's right hand impacting on her abdomen.

Ranko screams in pain, as a pain worse than anything that she ever felt explodes from her womb and spreads as a wildfire over her insides. "Hurt quite badly doesn't it Ranma?" Benji gasped as he drags himself away from Ranko. "One of the specials that I developed in secret, a pure electricity ball of the size of an orange. The beauty of it is that it fully penetrates on the target before exploding."

Ranko clutched her stomach writhing in pain, but she heard very well his words, how he called her, Ranma, that name now sounded so foreign, but just months earlier was how she was called, with time she had started to dismiss that name, it was a name given by one of the two people that she now hated with all her being, she started to like of Ranko, it was gentle and was given by Benji.

Benji leans against a tree trunk, gasping for air as the effort drained all his energy. "Why you did this?" Ranko asked in pain. "Why you didn't hold back?" "Hold back?!" Benji asked surprised. "Are you insane Ranma? I don't have the luxury of holding back against my enemies and opponents, especially you of all people."

"Since why holding back became a luxury?" Ranko asked turning her head to look at him. "It never became." Benji answered. "Since the beginning holding back wasn't even an option. Ranma look at the direction from where I came." Ranko forces herself to sit and feel the intense pain running all over her body.

"You see the blood spatters?" Benji asked in a pained voice. Ranko looked in horror indeed seeing the blood trail on the stone ground. "The smears of blood on the floor where I hit stones? How it splatters around those big smears? And that huge blood pool next to you. One hit Ranma." Benji said in a serious tone. "It only took one hit to you hurt me worse than I was ever hurt before in my life."

"It isn't possible!" Ranko exclaimed in disbelief. "You are strong! Resilient!" "I am weaker than you." Benji said in a flat tone. "I am weaker than Shampoo or Akane. Just look at me Ranma. A one year and something of rushed training. You have a lifetime worth of training, I am just human."

"And I am not?" Ranko asked. "You are superhuman." Benji answered flatly. "I am barely above the world's strongest man, the one of the TV show in that sports channel that I don't recall the name, I suffer to lift around eight hundred kilos, you, you easily lift eighty ton without breaking a sweat. You can kill me with the ease that someone else can swat a fly."

"That isn't true!" Ranko exclaimed. "Yes it is." Benji replied. "You held back a lot, I think that enough to fight with Ryoga and look how I got? I would get way less damage if hit by a speeding truck." "Then why I can't help you? Why I can't fight with you?!" Ranko asked.

"I am not fighting." Benji answered. "I am killing. This is a war, it is between us and then, and there can't be survivors, there can't be mercy, it isn't some game where you can stop when you get bored or tired of it, you can't make mistakes, to be defeated and expect to have another chance to try again, you have to hit when they are down, and keep hitting until they can't get up."

Benji pulls a bottle from his pocket and drinks the contents. "I can do it." Ranko said. "Yes you can." Benji replied. "You can kill, you can kill with more ease than me, with enough practice killing, you can become an assassin far better than me, but I don't want that for you."

"Who said that you can make my decisions?!" Ranko shouted. "Who said that you can make mine?" Benji said standing up uneasily. "You thought that if beating me, showing that you are strong would make me let you kill with me, that you could make a decision and force down my throat."

"You are doing the same with me." Ranko said bitterly. "Yes, you are right and I won't deny." Benji replied with a sad smile. "But unlike you I don't have anyone who stopped me from being a killer, I am jealous of you, you know? While I am out there stressing myself and risking death, you can stay here and have a normal life, having friends, and living peacefully. You don't get it do you Ranma? We live in two different worlds, while is easy to come to mine you can't ever, never return to yours. Once in the darkness you can't ever return to the light."

"Then why you do it? Why you stay?" Ranko asked crying bitterly. Benji chuckled. "It would be too easy to just walk away." Benji answered. "Just gather my things, maybe leaving you with some money and then vanishing in the world, if I made these identities for us I could make a new one just for me, it would be very, very easy to just disappear alone leaving you behind. But I don't do it. Why should I care, right Ranma? It is not like we are truly related; I am not your father, cousin, brother, or even a distant long lost relative."

"Then why you do it?" Ranko asked. "Why bother?" Benji shrugged. "I just do." Benji answered, feeling stronger than before Benji takes a deep breath. "Anyway the technique that I used in you isn't lethal, in one hour or so the pain will lessen enough to you to walk, and there is all that it has on that technique, just a large bunch of woundless pain." Benji walks away without looking at Ranko as he leaves the pension.

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Walking to the café is a trial of endurance, the potion that he drank earlier did little to repair all the damage on his insides, at the very least fixed any serious and head damages. Benji knows that once in the café, on Eri's reach he will get a good treatment, remaking a mental note of sending Eri back to the medical college Benji continues to walk with barely enough mind to keep himself cloaked by his technique.

He was quite sure that it was failing sometime since he could every now and then see how got scared with the sudden flashing image of a badly hurt man, in some cased Benji chuckled in pain when seeing people running away screaming 'ghost'. 'Days like this make me wish that I had landed in a different world.' Benji thought trying to keep himself awake and moving. 'Maybe a game world like Harvest Moon, yeah it is a nice one, a normal life where the highlights of the day is visiting one of the girls…or even To Heart, a regular school anime if you don't count the female androids… Pia Carrot wouldn't be bad either, it is after all based in a hentai game…El Hazard would be nice too.'

Benji sighs and then smile seeing the café. 'No use to crying over spilled milk.' Benji idly thought while entering on the café. 'Besides isn't like everyday here is an endless torture…' Benji opens the door of Eri's room. 'Scratch that…it is endless torture…either in pain or pleasure…'

"Eri when you are done with Fuuka I need some medical assistance." Benji said before closing the door. "Take your time." 'Well if wasn't for the whole hunting issue, the unknown enemy that is quite quiet, Ranma mood swings and this whole fighting issue it isn't such a bad world. I mean what world that I can have those two beauties in bed ready to do anything that I want would be bad?' Benji thought sitting on a table before lying down. 'If I look only to the bed side it is a quite good world, Nabiki, Nodoka, … how should I call her, well her too, Eri, Fuuka, some one night stands here and there, some of Nabiki's minions too, well it wasn't such a bad life, short but not bad.'

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Ranko throws herself in her bed, cleaning the front of the pension of all the blood that she spilled was hard since she still felt lots of pain, in a way she felt that was a righteous punishment for her careless and selfish actions, and at the same time it felt wrong for her to suffer that.

Hoping that the pain goes away Ranko tries ignoring it, more than one hour had passed since she took the hit but still hurt pretty badly. She never noticed that she fell in a tired, dreamless sleep, just several hours later she wakes with the sound of the tenants returning from their own business, the pain now lessened to a dull and constant but tolerable pulse.

Gathering spirit Ranko leaves her bed and her room, she needed to talk with someone and she had just beated nearly to death the only person who she trusts with her most personal secrets. But she had to talk with someone, as much she wanted to talk she also knew that she couldn't talk to anyone, Kitsune would use her words for profit, Keitaro and Naru wouldn't help, neither would Kaola or Shinobu, then Ranko turned to the person that she trusts most in the pension other than Benji, Motoko.

"Motoko can I speak with you?" Ranko asked after knocking on the swordswoman's door. "Just a moment." Motoko answered. "I just got home so I am changing now." "Okay I am done now." Motoko said while opening the door. "About what you want to speak about Ranko?" Motoko asked with a smile.

"It is something serious." Ranko replied. "Mind if we talk inside?" "Not at all." Motoko said letting Ranko in. "Let me put down the table and get some tea ready." Ranko watched Motoko quickly moving on her room, taking a square table from one of the closets, quickly attaching the legs of the table she puts it down and takes an electric water boiler from there.

In a couple minutes Motoko serves to Ranko a cut of steaming hot green tea, the two girls sitting on the floor facing the other across the table with a dish of rice crackers and other snacks between them. "It is a subject that you aren't comfortable speaking with your brother?" Motoko asked after sipping her tea. "I might not have a brother but I do experienced certain subjects that I felt uncomfortable speaking with my father and felt that was easier to speak with my mother."

Ranko looks at her tea, if was that her life would be so much easier. "You know that today I didn't go to school." Ranko said to Motoko, it wasn't a question but an affirmation since the two normally go to school together. "Yes, you told me that you had colic because your period." Motoko replied. "So it was a lie after all."

"When you noticed?" Ranko asked surprised by Motoko's sharpness, those kinds of lies and disguises always worked on Nerima. "It is the wrong time of the month." Motoko answered. "After living together as long as we do we do learn the others' time of the month. Especially considering that you tend to retain liquid on your periods. But since you felt a need to not go to class I assumed that you had a strong reason to do so and didn't question you then."

"At least I thought then that it was a strong and right reason." Ranko said in a sad whisper. "It has something to do with your brother being here in the morning and now he isn't, right?" Motoko asked. "And how you know that?" Ranko asked surprised. "First he left a note in the kitchen along with an addition to Shinobu's shopping list and some money to cover it, second I can tell." Motoko explained. "It is an aura that he gives when he is around." 'No need to let her know how comforting I think that it is.' Motoko added to herself.

"You two had a fight?" Motoko asked, it was the main reason that she could think that would make Ranko come talk to her. "It is normal between siblings to have arguments, they aren't serious or uncommon." "If was just siblings' fighting was okay." Ranko replied. "But is more than that, you know our situation, that he doesn't let me help when dealing with mother's organization."

"Then what exactly happened?" Motoko asked seriously, it was after all a serious subject. Ranko explains everything just hiding her old name and the fact that she isn't related to Benji from the tale. "I find kind of hard to believe that you are stronger than he is." Motoko commented.

"I have a lifetime of training." Ranko replied. "Benji hardly got two years of it." "So it is true after all." Motoko commented. "What is true?" Ranko asked worried. "You two aren't siblings." Motoko answered. "Why you say that?" Ranko asked even more worried and nervous.

"The hair color is a dead on give away." Motoko answered sipping her tea. "Skin color too, Benji's skin is darker than yours and that isn't a tan, your facial features are different, you are full Japanese, it shows on your face, Benji is mixed, the Japanese features are more subtle on him. If you two shared a parent it would show, even if was only a faint resemblance. What else is a makeshift story? Your names? Everything?"

"Not everything." Ranko said seriously, with no other choice but give to Motoko more details Ranko decides to tell more about the hunt. "While different from what Benji told you we are indeed being hunt by my mother, yes you are right we aren't siblings, but for months I saw him as my brother, even not from the same family we share the same last name, my mother before everything went wrong even thought in adopting him."

Motoko hears in silence to Ranko's story, not missing any details. "I don't know exactly why but one day we were attacked, instead of running away by himself Benji worried about me and my mother as well people that we thought that was family." Ranko continued, in a way felt good to tell her nearly everything. "Benji saved me, I was captured by people working under my mother, if he haven't I don't know what kind of suffering I would be experiencing today given by my mother."

Making a pause Ranko takes a deep breath. "We moved to see my mother and the others." Ranko said clutching the tea cup. "We were being careful since we didn't know if they were captured, by then we thought that an unknown force was attacking our group." Motoko nodded understanding, from what Ranko said before she gathered that before that fatidic day they were in good terms with each other.

"Then we saw my mother, two girls that I thought as sisters and a stranger talking." Ranko continued as her mind's eye repeats the whole scene. "They were speaking about us as if we were lower than humans, samples or objects. Benji had a girl who he was very close, lovers if you want to call them like that, I don't know how he felt but I know that I felt horrible when hearing that she tried hard to get a sample from him, and as sample they meant a child, as they continued to talk not making much sense for us Benji threw bombs that he got from our pursuers inside the room. We fled thinking that they would kill them."

"But you were mistaken." Motoko said horrified with the story, specially the part about the child. "Yes, but then we didn't know, Benji was very, very edgy and suspicious, even thought we had just 'killed' then he made a plan, an escape plan, he would mislead our pursuers sending on a fake trail, we would get as much money as we could from our accounts and then give the cards and the passwords away." Ranko explained what they did in the next hours. "I was amazed with everything, how Benji in such short time had created such a detailed plan, we hid for the night in a love hotel since those places you rent a room from a machine, perfect to people who wants privacy, in our case not being identified."

Motoko blushes at the love hotel part but it made lots of sense, she never went to one but understood the whole privacy issue. "In there we rested and cleaned ourselves." Ranko continued. "While Benji showered I watched the news, they covered up the incident as something else, Benji said that was good for us, the hunt wasn't by the law or official so they have to cover it up, it allowed us more freedom, while I showered Benji checked the weapons that he stole from the pursuers, when done he told me about changing our appearances. My hair is orange now but it wasn't always like this, he used something that he got from a person who trained him, he called permanent dye, in this way my true color wouldn't show as the hair color is changed deeply, don't ask me for the details he didn't explained."

Motoko nodded. "But it is an impressive tool." Motoko commented. "Without showing the different colored roots as your hair grows no one will be able to tell that you aren't a real orange haired girl." Ranko nodded agreeing. "Anyway we agreed in changing our wardrobes and hairstyles." Ranko commented. "Benji's hair was longer and back then we could see his eyes." Motoko held back a chuckle at the comment, it was a serious subject.

"And yes I had wolf Benji by then too, but he wasn't around as often, I left him with a friend in a place that he could run around." Ranko continued. "But then it was dangerous for him as well my friend." Motoko nodded understanding.

"Benji's misdirection plan was simple, the first part was something that he called sleeper, he fed his lover with a lie about an emergency plan in a fictions scenario that would require him to flee from Japan knowing that she wouldn't doubt of his word since he pretended to be drunk, she would look for us outside the country." Ranko continued her explanation. "The second part was to hide inside Japan, in some place that we could easily adapt and not call attention, they wouldn't search in their backyard, it is risky but they think that we are smart and would try living in some different country where they can't easily locate us."

"And why not doing so?" Motoko asked, partly because the danger that their presence brought to them, but mostly out of curiosity. "It is too soon, they are putting too much effort in locating where we are going outside Japan, they would eventually learn that we fled to a certain country and look there, from there they might be able to find our track." Ranko answered. "Waiting the dust to settle as was the idea that he gave me, I learned much later that it wasn't the only reasons. Benji was striking back at them, using different tactics Benji was assaulting the organization, crippling it and getting resources from them."

"And eliminating the reason that you two had to flee." Motoko said understanding, she could agree and respect that decision, she would take it too on his place and she wouldn't be as subtle as Benji. Ranko nodded confirming. "I learned by accident, I watched the news, saw some odd incidents, added to know escapades from him and eventually discovered his assaults." Ranko explained. "In the beginning I agreed in not doing anything, he was sneaking around, stealing information and ordinance from them; I am not good in those. But then it changed, he started to eliminate key members of the organization, fighting."

"And you thought that in that you could help." Motoko concluded. "Yes." Ranko confirmed. "Benji has done everything since we fled, I haven't helped with anything at all, he made the plan, he got us money, made us these new identities, found this pension for me to live in, I am useless, why he keep doing all this? Why I can't help too? Sure I am not as smart as he is, or as cunning and skilled, but I have my qualities too."

Motoko remains in silence for some moments, the story was much bigger than what she imagined in the first time that she heard the watered down version, but still she thought something that was similar to what Ranko told her. "You said that Benji was jealous of you right?" Motoko asked seriously.

"Yes." Ranko answered. "I don't really know or understand why." Motoko smiled gently. "Ranko did you ever had pet when a child, I mean other than Benji." Motoko asked. "No." Ranko answered, how could she had a pet when she didn't even had a place to call home?

"Well I had." Motoko said while pouring herself more tea. "I had a pet cat, we weren't allowed to have dogs because they are messy and noisy, and cats are more elegant and easy to care." Ranko cringed at the words cats and cat but hears Motoko's story.

"I won't get in details since I know about your problem." Motoko continued. "I really loved her and she always slept in my bed, one spring when I returned from a summer retreat from my school my parents told me that she ran away. I really couldn't understand why she would run away from me, she had all the food that she could eat, toys to play and everything that she could possibly wish for, we looked for her for weeks without a trace of her."

Motoko pauses and sips her tea before continuing. "Several years later I understood what happened, she had died, she was quite old for cats' standards and died on that summer, since I was too young to understand what it meant my parents lied to me and that she hasn't run away from home, but died of natural causes. By then I was fourteen, old enough to know and understand death, and what it means. Part of me, the most childish part of me felt angry and betray, but most of me understood what they did and forgave them, I was too young to understand, they felt that would be better to me to learn about it later."

"You didn't get angry that they forced that path to you?" Ranko asked seriously. "As I said a small part of me felt angry, but it was a selfish and immature part of me." Motoko answered. "As any child there were moments that I felt that those impositions as we call them are too much for us to take, but Ranko put your hand on your heart and think again really hard about where you would be if Benji wasn't there for you."

Ranko remains in silence while Motoko drinks her tea, Motoko was right; if Benji wasn't there she would be trapped in a lab being used as a sample. "And Ranko." Motoko added. "Even if you aren't truly related Benji does care about you, like when my parents lied to me about Yumi dying, Benji is trying to protect you of something that you aren't ready for or should experience."

After few moments of light silence Ranko said. "But isn't my decision to kill or not someone? I mean right now I could go outside and kill some guy that I don't like and there isn't anything that Benji can do to stop me." Motoko places her cup on the table. "That is true Ranko." Motoko replied seriously. "Nothing is preventing you on doing just what you said, but did you ever felt a blade slicing flesh?"

Ranko frowned confused, how one thing gets to do with the other. "Motoko I am on the cooking club, I cut meat all the time." Ranko said confused. "Yes, I forgot about that." Motoko replied. "Let me refrain then, Ranko did you ever killed anything?" "Well there was when I fished and roasted fish, or threw stone on birds to eat them." Ranko answered.

"Killing fish isn't a big deal, the birds died when the stone hitted them." Motoko replied. "What I mean is did you ever killed something with warm blood? Saw a little animal looking back at you scared as you are about to kill it?" Ranko swallowed uncomfortable at Motoko's description.

"Did you ever felt the sticky but at the same time slick blood coating your fingers with a shiny layer of warm liquid?" Motoko continued clutching at her hakama. "Felt how slippery it gets, how it sticks to things? Ever felt how skin, flesh and muscle give in to your blade, how the blade pulses at the beat of your victim's heart as the blood squeezes it way out from the wound?"

Ranko could see how tense Motoko was, her shoulders were shaking lightly and her forehead was covered with cold sweat, her white face got even whiter, Ranko knew that she was pale too; the coldness of her own face told her that. "You know that a while ago Benji taught me something." Motoko continued uneasily licking her lips in a gesture of unconscious nervousness. "That he made me stab him."

Ranko nodded as uneasy and nervous as Motoko. "It is a very powerful and very scary feeling." Motoko said with a slight edge on her voice. "Then there is the guilt too, we are taught that killing is wrong, that every life is sacred and should be protected. But then…"

Motoko swallows nervously. "…At that moment I learned something…as everyone I always thought that something would stop death, that some divine force would intervene at that moment, to save that life, but you know…no one came, there wasn't a divine intervention of any kind…" Motoko said in a voice that mixes fear, nervousness, tension, excitement and shame. "As Benji said in three different ways with the blade already in him I could kill him, nothing would stop me, no one could stop me. It was so easy, just as he said that would be if I felt like. Just twist the blade and slash to his left, or just slash up or downwards. Ranko that sensation can't be described, once you get past the horror, once you stop thinking on the laws of society you can see how easy it is, it is a powerful feeling to be able to end a life just like that. Just because I can do it."

Ranko stared in silence at Motoko. "It is too much knowing that you can kill countless people just by ending one life." Motoko continued. "Directly I am just killing my victim, but I am also stopping him or her of having children, erasing a whole family line, I could be killing people that in the future could be very important maybe even the world's savior. And if you think just about the present still too powerful, too addictive. He doesn't want you to know that Ranko, I thought that I had to learn that, and when I learned that I learned that I wasn't ready for it, not only wasn't ready but now I learned that I didn't want to learn it at all. But now it can't be undone."

Ranko remained in silence, it was by far more than what Benji said, much more detailed, verging lust with a minor edge of insanity, but the bottom line was the same, once she does it she can't ever go back, things had changed forever and would never change back.

Motoko takes few deep breathes to calm herself, fighting down the seduction of the dark side of the sword. "I know why he is jealous of you Ranko." Motoko said after a while, Ranko feels nervous with Motoko's smile. "I am also jealous of you, you are still innocent, you didn't felt what I felt, you don't know how it feels to kill someone. I may not have killed Benji but I got far too close, I got a taste of it. He feels jealous that you don't know against what he truly fights against."

'No… that is wrong, that is wrong Motoko.' Ranko thought with her mind overloading with everything, then she recalled a long gone conversation, not forgotten but not recalled. **"Because unlike me you aren't deprived of morals, I kill and I don't care, I maul and don't give a damn about it, I am beast in human form. You are still human, you can have a closer to normal life, and you said yourself that you like of this life. You have made friends, living a life close of one of an average girl."**

Every word that Benji said to her on that afternoon resurfaced on her mind, how he looked and how deep down she knew that he no longer care, but with those words a even more distant memory surfaces, one particular incident, one mistake, something that in the past she couldn't understand.

Closing her eyes she recalled what to her felt like a lifetime ago, and in certain ways it was a lifetime ago, she recalled the accident in the Furinkan School, when Benji accidentally killed a boy to defend himself, how he looked broken, how he was taken away as a lifeless doll.

'I was so innocent back then.' Ranko thought. 'I thought that I could do anything, face no consequences, no one would get hurt, nothing would be wrong and just few days later things would be normal again. It isn't like that in the real world. Benji knows what he is doing, god he knows what Motoko is suffering, and he suffered the same thing but…' "Oh my god…" Ranko whispered.

"What is wrong?" Motoko asked surprised, Ranko was crying. "No wonder why he is like that." Ranko said in horror. "All this killing, the plans, everything…god it makes sense now." Ranko holds her head as her world turns upside down once again. "Ranko what is wrong? What makes sense?" Motoko asked worried, the girl seems in the verge of a breakdown.

"Benji isn't doing all this to protect us." Ranko said seriously. "This isn't a kill or be killed battle for survival." Ranko choked and exclaimed. "God! Motoko he is doing all this for revenge!"

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Feeling a mixture of numbness and pain Benji wakes up, he sees Eri near him. "How long I was out?" Benji asked sitting up, he can feel a strong pain on his left side where Ranko hit him. "Eleven hours." Eri answered. "Lay down, you aren't fully healed, your ribs were shattered so badly that was almost like flour, don't even get me started on the damage on the internal organs. What in heavens name hit you?"

"Ranko." Benji answered with a groan, eleven hours meant that it was past midnight and he had a schedule to keep. "Where are we?" "Inside the base." Eri answered. "We needed a medical facility to treat you and the café doesn't have any." "So how frustrated you two are?" Benji asked teasingly. "Not much." Eri answered. "We dealt with that after you were out of critical condition, and even if we haven't we know well our places."

"Where are my clothes?" Benji asked, then recalling that they were soaked in blood. "Forget about those, get me some fresh clothes, we have things to do today and they need to be done." "You are not in shape to be moving around." Eri said seriously. "You should lie down, rest and heal."

"Eri my clothes." Benji replied seriously, sternly enough to recall their roles. Eri meekly backed away. "I will go get them." Eri said in an apologetic tone. Benji hated to act like that, Eri was a really nice person and she helped him more than once, but what has to be done has to be done, if he loses that window he might never get another one.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Fuuka felt tense with Benji so close of her, she still recalls the strength and forcefulness that he can produce, Benji is standing next to Fuuka who is sited in a chair facing a computer; he is leaning forward to read over her shoulder. "Good things are still in schedule." Benji said with a pleased nod. "What about the weapons?"

"One Makarov, one Ak-47, one Saiga-12, RPG with two extra grenades, one M-60 and two Berettas M92." Fuuka answered. "And lastly the Dragunov. You are sure of this?" "Yes I am." Benji answered. "And I need some magic too. Levitation, shield and invisibility."

"You aren't a mage, even controlling ki you can't use magic now." Fuuka replied. "That is why I keep you around." Benji said with a smile. "Do something that I can use that allows me to cast spells. Charm, token whatever you want to call it or can make it as long I can use as many times as needed."

"Listen to make that kind of items it requires a lot of skill, knowledge and technique." Fuuka protested. "There is even an school for that kind of sorcery because of the complexity of creating charms like that, even if we could find a mage that can do charms it is very unlikely that he would sell them for us, those kind of charms are heavily controlled by the mage society."

"And once again we get back to why I keep you around." Benji said. "It isn't just for your pretty face, slim figure and beautiful ass. You are a mage." "A combat mage." Fuuka replied embarrassed with Benji pointing out what he finds of more attractive on her. "I am not a charm scholar."

"You told me that you are like a commando unit from the mage society so you should have notions of charm making." Benji pointed out. "As you said notions." Fuuka replied. "I can fully silence firearms, make guided arrows that follow targets, things like that, not infusing something with a complex spell."

"We have books here right?" Benji asked recalling the library. "Yes, two thousands spell and magic related books." Fuuka answered. "Then we are bound to have a book about making charms." Benji replied. "Now get that pretty ass out of the chair and go find it, I need those spells in a charm before the daybreak, or Eri will use those bells in your firm and bouncy breasts again."

Fuuka defensively covers her breasts at the memory of the punishment applied to her most recent so far only mistake, something that she is trying very hard not to earn again, she didn't liked a bit to have her nipples pierced to hold those bells. Fuuka rushes out of the room to find the book and make the charm.

Letting out a tired sigh Benji holds his left side. "Man I am totally not in shape for this." Benji murmured as his side throbs in pain, he looks at the clock in the corner of the computer screen. "In one hour I have to start this, and after that two intense hours before the sunrise, two more before the main course. Luckily I might get some sleep tonight if we finish with the hospital fast enough."

………Several hours before that……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Benji isn't doing all this to protect us." Ranko said seriously. "This isn't a kill or be killed battle for survival." Ranko choked and exclaimed. "God! Motoko he is doing all this for revenge!" "Ranko what you mean with that?!" Motoko exclaimed with Ranko clinging on her clothes.

"I never realized this before! I was so blind! They were lovers! Lovers!" Ranko exclaimed. "Way before it happened, way before the accident! They never openly named themselves as boyfriend and girlfriend but you could tell! Motoko she was the one who was there for him after he killed someone by accident! She was the one who comforted him! She was the closest person of him! And she betrayed him! Motoko she wanted to kill or capture us! She trampled on his feelings!"

Motoko couldn't really understand why Ranko was so despaired, why she was so worried, she can't believe that Benji would do all that just for revenge, but she could also understand if he did, in make of her favorite samurai novels that kind of reason was common and seen as honorable, but was hard to Motoko to digest that Benji had a lover; true that he was handsome and was bound to have one but she never thought that he had one.

"Even if it is true Ranko by doing that you two won't have to worry about being hunted any longer." Motoko said seriously. "Won't have to fear bringing danger to the people around you, Ranko you two might live a normal life again." "Normal life?" Ranko asked in an unstable tone. "I don't know what a normal life is, the closest thing of a normal life that I had was these last months living here, going to school, making friends, doing things as a normal girl."

"Then you can keep living like this Ranko." Motoko replied. "After he is done you two will have freedom to do whatever you want, live here, leave here, anything. What would stop you two once your enemies are gone?" "Motoko Benji has killed many, he will kill many more." Ranko said seriously. "As far the law says he is a criminal, we are accessories."

"Ranko you are looking at this on the wrong light." Motoko said seriously. "Yes he killed, but they were after you, they are illegally hunting the two of you, willing to torture and kill anyone to achieve the goal of killing or capturing you. You two are in the right side, and if the worse happens and we are exposed we can just vanish as you two did in the first time."

"We?" Ranko asked confused. "You called me an accessory too." Motoko answered. "In matter of fact I am, I saw him killing and then kidnapping a woman to interrogate, which oddly enough now works under him. As you said by the law I am also an accessory, so if exposed I have three choices, the first kill myself to clean my family's honor, the second is to hide myself in a mountain and live as an hermit, and the third is flee with you and Benji, and from what I heard I believe that he would find a way for me to 'die' to clean my family's honor before making me vanish, if not he would expose himself and come up with something as he was blackmailing me to keep his secret. This last one is the one that I believe that would happen if we are exposed, I know that Benji would make himself guilty of a crime that he didn't do to take over my own crime. He might even do it with you too."

…………Later in that night……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Benji looked through a scope; he had already killed his target, two shots, one to the heart and a second to the head, to not give room to chances. The recoil of the Dragunov made his side ache with a strong throbbing dull pain. Ironically Benji's target had his own last name, Himura.

However Benji wasn't from that world, he wasn't even born in Japan in his own world, the Himuras there aren't related to him and he wasn't showing any guilt in shooting them down. The chaos inside the mansion broke loose with the shots; Benji had planned ahead and thanks to Eri mined the whole place.

The shooting was to ensure the death of Kurata Himura, Nodoka's uncle and main supporter, the explosion was to destroy the mansion and erase the evidence, besides he was holding party for yakuza oyabuns who he supplied with weapons, Russian weapons.

Benji smiled seeing the massive explosion, a huge tank of propane from the mansion's kitchen and to heat water for the huge hot spring styled bath added to one hundred kilos of C-4 turned the whole place in an inferno, and the night had barely started out for Benji.

There was twenty more Himuras unknowing waiting for him, twenty one adding Nodoka, it was a long night, all those Himuras would be all in one place in two hours, after all he just killed one of them, the head and the other important members of the family would have to discuss that, and Benji would add even more heat on the already heated discussion.

It was against Shiaki's best judgment but was kind of hard to trust on that when he knows what he knows about her, and since he was going to hell anyway why bother in being nice?

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Minoru Himura wasn't on Benji's original hit list, Benji was even going to let him walk after killing everyone else, the poor guy was just a businessman like many others in Japan, he was just born in a odd family. Benji was almost letting him go, maybe even apologizing for the mess in his office down the hall.

But a low whine made Benji stop, it wasn't the kind of whine that came from a scared child, one that was waken in the middle of the night by the angry roar of a machine gun that had the father trying to comfort her telling that was everything all right, it was a despaired and terrified whine, mixed with pained sobs and cries.

That mixed with a sweaty scent coming from Minoru made Benji suspicious, just the sweat would be normal considering that Minoru was staring at the barrel of a loaded gun, but there was also the scent of blood, semen, fear and a sweeter, gentler scent of sweat from a young girl.

Grabbing Minoru's wrists Benji nails his hands over his head, driving a knife on the thick cuffs of his pajamas and robe, adding a tighter knot on the robe's belt Benji enters on the room, the scents only grew stronger. It wasn't the familiar scent of sex, the excitement and hormones that are released during the act by both parties.

"I am not going to hurt you." Benji said kneeling next to the bed where a young girl is hiding, clinging on the blanket shaking in fear and with her sobs. He could see in the half lit room torn pieces of fabric, pink fabric with cute prints on it, the kind that would be find on a little girl's nightclothes. "Did the man that was here before hurt you?" Benji asked gently.

A small opening on the blanket and a turning neck let him know that he was being studded by the scared girl. "I am an envoy send by a darker force." Benji said to her. "I won't harm you, I am here to punish bad people and protect the good people. You don't have anything to fear from me. Was the man that was here before me bad? Did he hurt you? Force you to do things that you didn't want to? If he did I will punish him, if not I will walk away from here and he won't be harmed."

Benji could smell her fear, her distrust, her hope, while wanting to just kill Minoru he didn't want to make the girl suffer any more than she already had, she was after all, innocent. "If there is no answer I will have to assume that he isn't bad." Benji said standing up, he knew that he was wrong but he couldn't wait there forever, sooner or later the police would arrive and he still have things to do.

"Wait!" Benji heard a despaired cry from the girl, her voice hoarse and shaking badly. "He hurt me." She said crying. "Every night since I turned six he is coming and hurting me, I beg him to stop, be he doesn't…he isn't my daddy, my daddy was kind, never hurted me."

"I will make it stop." Benji said in a gentle tone. "He won't hurt you anymore." Benji walks out of the room and sees Minoru struggling with the sleeves. "How long?" Benji asked to the older man. "And don't lie I will know if you lie." "Three days!" Minoru exclaimed scared. "She turned six three nights ago."

Benji knew that it was truth, he had done his homework on Minoru too, widower, wife died falling from a set of stairs on a mall, truly accidental since her high heels hell broke when she was taking a step, father of Nagisa Himura age six, private tutored and schooled in home. Benji didn't saw much problem with that, if he wanted her to have a different education it was Minoru's problem and not his.

"You know." Benji said pulling the knife from the wall. "If you had waited ten days from her birthday, even less than that just five days, you would have gotten away with this, at least from me catching you. You see I had no intent of killing you tonight, in my research you came clean, working as an accountant in your father's company, living in the main family mansion, a hard working father. That was the image that I got from you in my research, and guess what? I just learned that you are rapist. And I don't like rapists."

"I don't get problem with pedophilia and incest?" Minoru asked confused. "If was consensual it isn't my business, I think that I believe that love can break barriers and age is one of them." Benji answered. "Anyway back to the subject in hand here, I don't like rapists and you raped a child, to make things worse your daughter. Now what should I do with you?"

"Let me go away with a scare and a scolding?" Minoru offered scared. Benji chuckled and smiled under his mask. "Nice try." He said amused. "It was worth the shot, but I am not that much of a nice guy, but since I liked that shot I will give you few choices, shot or stab, low or high. Pick one way and one height."

"No fast or slow?" Minoru asked crying. "Nope." Benji answered. "High and shot." Minoru said crying. "I see, then you would really hate being stabbed in the lower body." Benji commented just before driving the knife on Minoru's groin with enough force to pierce the bone and then the wall behind it nailing the now screaming man to the wall.

"As I said Minoru I am not that nice." Benji said placing a ball of plastique on Minoru's open mouth and then taping it shut and driving a detonator through the tape. "There is enough explosive on your mouth to explode a large engine block." Benji said placing a dead man's switch detonator on Minoru's right hand. "And that is a dead man's switch detonator, if you release the trigger even for just a moment it will detonate the charge. And to make things more interesting…" Benji takes another knife and makes a large cut on Minoru's groin.

"That should have reached your femoral." Benji said nailing the knife on Minoru's left hand and them to his left thigh. "From the size of the cut you should have five minutes before you faint, then boom, of course if you don't faint and explodes you will bleed out. I can't say that was a pleasure meeting you, but was nice killing you. I won't be seeing you again."

Benji walks away leaving the man alone, in the end of the next night Nagisa would be the last Himura alive, at least from that world, Ranko wasn't a Himura any longer and even if she was Ranko wouldn't want the inheritance that Nagisa would inherit, the girl would need it all to at least diminish her pain.

Benji walks over the corpses that he produced, bodyguards, security and even some of the staff that fought against him, he was done with that part of the hit anyway, from then was killing the last members of the organization before moving to Nodoka and then ending with the leaders of the organization, the ones that could start it all over again.

Benji stops and looks back, he heard the sound of bare feet on the carpeted floor, and he sees Nagisa running at his direction clad only on the torn remnants of her pajamas. "He is being punished." Benji said to her, he thought that she only wanted the confirmation of that.

He is surprised with her grabbing his jacket's sleeve. "You shouldn't be following me." Benji said to her in a gentle tone. "It isn't place for a little girl." She clings even tighter on his sleeve. Benji sighed seeing the shine in her eyes, he knows that look, it was the same stubbornness that Ranko have, he was used to seeing that, he won't be able to convince her to stay, and he knows for sure if he puts her to sleep and leave her alone in a room she will hunt him for revenge.

"I will take you to somewhere safe." Benji said hiding his annoyance. "Today you will stay there, and until I think in how to deal with you." Nagisa nodded in silence. "You know." Benji said picking the girl up. "If you stay here you will inherit the entire fortune of your family? It is lots of money for you to do anything that you want."

She doesn't say anything, she only holds on his collar and rests her head against his shoulder.

"I guess that I will have to change the plans even more." Benji muttered walking to the car that he used to break the entry gate and then the entry of the mansion. "It is a good thing that I still have plenty of those plastique bars in the trunk. Time to burn another mansion to the ground. I just wonder how much artwork I will be destroying just for this. It is a shame."

………Few hours earlier……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Eri finishes adjusting the maid outfit that she got for that assignment, it was plain and uncute, nothing that she would normally wear, and it wasn't even anything that even maid fans would like. Looking at herself on her pocket mirror she checks on her now black hair.

"Well this will do it." She whispered closing the mirror and pocketing it, she pulls a pistol and a suppressor from her handbag and screws the suppressor on the pistol's muzzle, a final check to see if it was loaded and with the safety off and she was done with the preparations.

Hiding the pistol on a round metal tray that she is carrying she leaves the janitor's room that she was changing on, moving to the elevators knowing exactly to which floor to go and what to do. It was one in the morning, most of the guests in the hotel are sleeping, some were having private parties, but the ones that she will be visiting are protecting a key member of Nodoka's organization, a mid age man with a reputation of enjoying too much younger female escorts.

She rings the doorbell with her gloved finger. "Who is it?" A male voice asked from the other side of the door. "It is the VIP service lady." Eri answered, she knew the effect that her voice had in males, she was very used in using her traits to lure and entice men. The door opens and a man on the early thirties wearing a gray suit looks at Eri. "Definitely VIP lady." He said with an approving nod.

"Glad that you enjoyed your last sight." Eri said with a smile while pulling the pistol and firing at the man's forehead, she walks past the corpse throwing the tray down and closing the door. "So who was it?" A second man in a suit asked walking to the living area. "Room service." Eri replied shooting the newcomer in the forehead. "I am here to clean the room."

"What with all the noise?" A shorter, fatter and bald man in a bathrobe asked leaving the bedroom. "I apologize for the noise." Eri said leveling the gun at the man. "I will be done soon." "Wait isn't you…!" The man's sentence is cut by a series of five shots on his face, groin and heart.

Eri moves to the room's bathroom finding it empty, the balcony and the small guestroom too, she lastly moves to the main bedroom. Eri feels happier that she had shot the man more than once as she sees a young teenager sobbing in the bed, she could smell blood and sex in the room, it was clear what had happened there, a girl trying to make some extra money got the worst possible client.

Eri could see the torn school uniform by the bed, it was a common fantasy among older men, and by the girl's age she was indeed in high school. As if she is chewing something Eri moves her lips before swallowing. "It is over now." Eri said with her voice much different than before, a heavy accented and high pitched voice, unlike her real voice. "From here you have three choices, walk away from here and forget that this ever happened, stay here until the police arrives and find you, it will be a scandal first you are underage, second you were raped and third I killed the rapist, and now the last option."

Eri pauses as the girl looks at her. "I can end it all right now." Eri concluded leveling the muzzle at the girl's direction. "You will be a forgotten victim, influential people will hide your presence, most likely burry your body in some forgotten place to never be found and no one will know that you were raped and killed, all to preserve a little face of the group that your rapist was part of. But still in the end the suffering for you will end right now."

"Can I take any valuable that I can find?" The girl sobbed. "I don't care, I came here to kill him, and not to steal as far as I care is compensation for what you suffered." Eri replied. "Forget that this ever happened, that you even came to this room. And if you need help there is a hotline for rape victims."

Eri can't do anything else for the girl, her rapist was already punished; leaving the room Eri hides the pistol and moves to the elevator. 'It isn't much of a surprise.' Eri thought while taking out the maid clothes revealing a one piece skin tight night dress underneath it. 'After all they used to blackmail him over that anyway.'

With the maid outfit and pistol discarded on the elevator shaft Eri leaves the elevator and the hotel, walking to a parked car where Fuuka was waiting for her. "Move to the next location." Eri said after putting on the seat belt. "I have another 'client' tonight." "Everything moved as planned?" Fuuka asked while driving away. "Yes." Eri answered looking outside the window. "They never saw it coming."

………One hour after the sunrise…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Father Takayuki was surprised in seeing someone on his church so early in the morning, normally the church was quite empty since most of the neighborhood is Buddhist, but someone was in the confessional and was his duty as a priest to listen to that poor person's sins and forgive him.

Taking his place on the confessional he slides open the shutter revealing the tight mesh connecting the two cabins signaling the start of the confession. "Forgive me father because I have sinned." An unknown male voice said from the other side, Takayuki doesn't recognize his voice; clearly he wasn't a regular follower from the neighborhood.

"The Lord almighty is benevolent he will forgive you if you repent." Takayuki said. "My son what are yours sins?" "It has been more or less than years since my first and last confession." He said. "Since then I had engaged sex outside the wedlock with different and multiple partners, I committed adultery with a married woman three different times with two different women."

"The flesh is weak and is easy to succumb to the pleasure of the flesh." Takayuki said in a gentle and wise tone. "Everyone makes mistakes." "There is more father I have killed over five hundred people in the last two years and just tonight I killed over one hundred people before coming here." He added. Takayuki swallows hard, until the killing part everything was understandable, he was used to hear that kind of confessions in a regular basis.

"And after I am done here I will go kill many more." The stranger said. "Then I will find one if not both of my lovers and have every kind of sex know between men and women." "If you don't regret why you are confessing?" Takayuki asked. "Sounded like a funny idea." The man answered. "And to make my sins worse father I have killed a man of the cloth."

"What?" Takayuki asked confused. "I rigged your chair." The man answered. "When you sited you activated a pressure switch connected to one kilo of plastique inside a five kilos corn can filled with steel ball bearings, anyway it doesn't matter if you remain seated there until the doomsday hoping that a regular comes and call the police, in two minutes after I leave it will explode anyway."

"Why you are doing this?" Takayuki answered scared and nervous. "Your sins are worse than mine father." The man answered. "The orphans that you should be taking care off, you sold them to an organization that you belong, you use your reputation and place in the community and church to get more orphans to sell them."

Takayuki shakes as he hears the other cabin's door opening. "And father I have already stole the information from your office." Benji said leaving the cabin. "Thanks to you now I know where the base is located, now I can kill everyone there." Benji leaves the church but stays near; he hears a scream that is followed by a large explosion. "I forgot to confess about lying too." Benji said with a smile. "I placed ten kilos of plastique there."

………Earlier……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Inside his car Benji rests his forehead on the wheel, he was starting to feel really tired, in normal circumstances he would be fine but it was taking much more of him to move with his hurt side. On the passenger's seat Nagisa is sleeping wrapped on Benji's jacket, with a tired sigh Benji pulls a hooded sweat shirt from a bag in the back seat and puts it on.

Benji leaves the car and walks to the passengers' side and gently picks Nagisa up, he closes the door and walks to an apartment building. Few minutes later he knocks on a door. Inside Rin Shinoyama angry for being disturbed in the middle of the night moves to the door, she gasped in horror seeing a dark figure of a hooded man, the hood so low that she couldn't see his face.

"Rin it is me." Benji said knowing that she was in the other side, he could hear her breathing. Letting out a sigh of relief Rin opens the door. "You scared the life out of me." Rin said in a scolding tone. "I thought that was a stalker or a criminal." "I have other priorities than appearance right now." Benji said entering on the apartment. "I need you to hold on something for me."

"You come here at…four in the morning to ask me that?" Rin asked in disbelief. "It couldn't wait until morning?" "No." Benji answered gently lying Nagisa on Rin's sofa. "I am leaving her to your care for one or two days." "Himura-senpai what did you do now?" Rin asked seriously.

"First don't call me like that." Benji replied. "Second she was raped by her father, and third I am busy killing, so I can't look over her until I am done." "Well I guess that less details I know better it will be for me." Rin commented. "What do I tell her?" "That you are taking care of her for me while I am out punishing bad people, and that I should be back in few days." Benji answered.

"How long?" Rin asked, she owed too much to him to refuse but she can't take care of her for long periods of time. "In the tops one week." Benji answered. "Just as long as I need to come up with a better plan of what to do, feel free to expend as much as you need with her, I will cover it later. And Rin no shopping sprees."

Rin chuckled uneasy as Benji discovered her plan. "But as compensation for watching her you can buy for yourself anything under fifty hundred dollars." Benji added with a smile. "Yay!" Rin exclaimed. "Himura-senpai I love you!" Rin hugs and kisses Benji in a display of her happiness.

She frowns and pulls away. "Why you are tasting that bad?" Rin asked wiping her lips with her nightgown hem. "I am killing for four hours straight." Benji answered. "Sweat, blood and medicine won't make me taste nice right now. And I told you to stop calling me like that, she might hear."

"Who?" Rin asked confused. "Tendo-senpai?" "No." Benji answered and points to Nagisa. "She. You aren't supposed to tell her my name. Anyway I have a schedule to keep and people to kill, you be nice with her, give her a bath and let her eat anything that she wants for breakfast as long is reasonable."

"Hai." Rin replied with a nod. "Later I will call to check out on things." Benji added while walking to the door. "Needless to say that you have to skip school tomorrow." "I am with a cold." Rin answered with a grin. Benji smiled and leaves the apartment knowing that Nagisa is in good hands.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Eri smiled hearing the screams coming from the room that she had just left, pressing the lobby button of elevator she casually checks her image on the mirror, her hair now dark green, the dress was the same but soon she will get rid of it, she needed it only to entice her next target and slip between his security, her 'present' that she left in the room will deal with them.

Waiting outside the building is Fuuka; Eri enters in the car and drives away. "Now what?" Fuuka asked to her mistress. "We get rid of this car, this dress and other evidence." Eri answered. "Then we can relax until noon. I am dying for a bath right now, to get rid of the scent of that grease ball from me. But know that he didn't even get what he wanted before he died is nice."

"You won't try helping him?" Fuuka asked surprised, Eri's devotion to Benji was limitless. "He would punish me if I did." Eri answered reclining the seat and relaxing. "As much as I want to help he told me to not do so, then I have to obey, he is the alpha and my master."

After few moments of silence Eri asked. "You finished what he asked for?" Fuuka nodded agreeing. "Yes and it wasn't easy." Fuuka answered. "I am almost out of mana because of that and I am not even sure in the power of the spells." "He said as long they work it is okay." Eri replied. "If he gets invisible, shielded and floats as much as he needs and wishes for and can supply with energy then it is good for now."

"The shield isn't all that powerful" Fuuka commented. "It should hold the equivalent energy of five RPGs in a row before vanishing and need to be recast, but more than that at one time will break the shield and the remaining force will hit him, the shield will take some of the damage but everything else hits him."

"I am sure that he won't meet anything as powerful as that." Eri commented. "We are dealing with humans here; at the worst case scenario they will use a tank or a bomb." "I am saying that a big bomb might be too much." Fuuka replied. "And you know that he makes his bombs big and filled with shrapnel."

"He does intend to inflict maximum killing of soft human targets." Eri commented. "Anyway we don't have to worry about that, he handed you your ass when you first met right?" Fuuka groaned when recalled of that, she hates recalling of her failures. "Right." Fuuka answered. "He killed lycanthropes in full war form without changing to his war form. He can deal with anything that they throw against him." Eri commented with a smile.

………One hour earlier……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

'This damn side is killing me.' Benji thought with pain running through his body. 'How I am supposed to kill like this? And how I get rid of this idiot bouncing on my back trying to break my spine?' Benji is face down against the floor with a tall man in a black suit jumping over his back, the man was as tall, heavy and strong as a sumo wrestler.

………Five minutes earlier…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

With a tired sigh Benji discards the now useless empty Makarov. "Well this is the last of it." Benji commented looking once again to the now headless form of a politician. "Now is getting to the priest and introducing him to his maker." As Benji leaves the office he is tackled by a tall bearded man on a suit.

'I thought that I killed all the bodyguards.' Benji thought while stabbing the man's back with a knife as he rushes against a wall. Benji gasped as the air is expelled from his lungs by the impact on his weakened ribs, but the man falls limp at his feet. "I hope that he is the only survivor." Benji commented looking down.

"Not a chance little man!" A deep voice came from behind as an arm thicker than Benji's thigh breaks through the wall and grabs Benji, pulling him back tearing the brick wall as if it was made of paper and wood as Japanese sliding door. Benji gasped as he is thrown against another wall badly cracking it.

With a war cry the man charges against Benji as a fast and massive as a speeding truck. Benji let out a yelp and quickly runs from the path of the charge on his fours. "Now that got to hurt." Benji commented seeing the man impacting hard against a wall, face first to a fire extinguisher.

"Here try it." The man said swinging the red tube of metal against Benji and clubbing him in the head, sending Benji against a wall. Benji shakes his now throbbing head, trying to get rid of the cobwebs. "Ack!" Benji exclaimed rolling to the side and avoiding a second impact from a massive overhead swing of the extinguisher.

'My reaction time isn't all that good.' Benji thought while the man is covered by a CO2 cloud from the now broken extinguisher. 'I will give him a dose of frag and run away.' "Not so fast!" The man shouted throwing the extinguisher on Benji. Benji deflects the tube with his left hand. "What about I give you a box of cookies and we talk about this as two grown men?" Benji asked while dodging the man. "Well a grown man and an even overgrown man."

'I need to find a grenade; I know that I pocketed some before coming here.' Benji thought while searching on his pockets. "Hey there is one of them." Benji commented seeing a grenade flying at his direction. "Shit!" Benji exclaimed slapping the grenade away in midair.

He throws himself on the floor getting more distance from it. It explodes in a bright flash and a loud noise. 'I thought that I only packed fragmentation ones, I must have gotten a flash bang by mistake.' Benji thought with his ears ringing even thought he is wearing a noise filter on them.

The man jumps on Benji's back and start to jump up and down at his heart's content trying to break Benji's back or organs, whatever give in first. And that takes us back to the present time.

Benji rolls to the side as the man jumps; pulling the first gun that he could get from his jacket Benji fires at the man. The man falls down limp and Benji takes some deep breathes. "I don't remember getting this one tonight." Benji muttered looking at a single shot break open 40mm grenade launcher. "But I don't care how it got there."

Struggling a bit Benji stands hearing his back popping back in place. "It is a good thing that I used to ask to my mother pop my back often, at least I know how to minimize the pain from someone jumping on my back." Benji murmured walking away. "After today I will get a vacation. Maybe in somewhere calm as the south pole."

As the elevator's doors close Benji sees the fat man's corpse exploding. "Well I am not the one cleaning this up anyway." Benji commented leaning against the wall. "But things could be worse." "Me and my big mouth." Benji cursed seeing a group of armed men in the basement parking area. "When I will learn that saying that only makes things worse?"

………In the morning………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

The residents of Hinata-sou are watching the news. "And a series of terrorist attacks and assassinations in various locations of Tokyo took place between midnight and daybreak." The anchor said in a serious and somber tone. "The number of deaths hasn't been calculated but the police estimates over two hundred deaths during the night, no one knows the cause and no group has claimed responsibility for them. Among the dead are the entire members of the Himura family, killed when their family mansion was exploded by the criminals, including the small Nagisa Himura, the only heir of the Himura family, the assistant district attorney Masahiro Ogawa, killed in a suite in Shibuya, the assistant of the minister of defense Matsue Taiki, killed in a suite in Juuban."

"That is horrible." Naru commented. "What is the world turning to?" Motoko discreetly glances at Ranko who is hearing everything in silence, the orange haired girl is pale, not that anyone knew but Ranko just lost an entire family that she never knew that she had and never met, and now she wouldn't ever had a chance to meet.

"They even killed a catholic priest." Kitsune commented. "What a bunch of lunatics." "Wait something is happening." Shinobu exclaimed. "This just came in." The anchor said holding an envelope that was just handed to him. "We just received what is claimed to be the declaration of intent of the culprits of tonight's attacks…"

End of the chapter nine:

Author explanation corner:

BALDE: As mentioned in the story a fake organization, a smoke screen to hide Benji's identity as the mind behind the attack, the name means bucket in Portuguese. I chose that because was something plain and a bit silly, and since most of organizations have acronym names I picked up a random word and made it an 'organization' B.A.L.D.E.

Eri's ring on Benji's phone: Look back on everything that I ever wrote about Eri and you will see why that song.

Keitaro's plans and numbers involved: I used an interned currency converter so the value might be inaccurate, I also don't know the exact price of land and rent in Japan so I just threw what I felt that was right.

And since Keitaro isn't taking the massive head trauma that he would take in the same period of the manga and anime he is able to think in some good plans. Haruka will be Keitaro's partner, she is family and he trust on her so he knows that he can count on her with his plans and even coming with some good plans too.

Evil dead 3, army of darkness: I like that movie, particularly the ending that Ash is back to the S-mart that he works on and a witch appears, but the one that he drinks one extra drop of the medicine is also a funny one, and is the one mentioned in the story, since Benji found the pension deserted without anyone around and knowing how things are in there it felt like a natural thing to thought.

Ranko's attack: I already had a scene with Benji and Ranko discussing about him stealing from the organization, but since then things escalated and Benji isn't just killing a handful of guards to steal information, weapons, money and whatever more he can from the buildings.

Benji was now killing people, sure Ranko could be wrong in her assumption that Benji was behind those killings, but this time she wasn't. Anyway Ranko is Ranma we all know that so it is only natural that with one punch she can send Benji to the ICU, Benji's stronger form is the war form and even in that form Ranko is way stronger than Benji.

Ranko's conversation with Motoko: So of the dialogue lines came longer than expected, slightly different than what I had planned but still the same, well even better than the planned since the ending of the first part just came out of the blue while writing and it fit and felt so right.

Originally Motoko wasn't going to learn that much that soon, but the story developed to that, Motoko is also involved on the hunt in a lesser way, she is covering for Benji and Ranko, and that is why Ranko felt that could speak with Motoko, knowing that Motoko would die before breaking a confidence.

The conversation also helped to clear or just add some important details about the period between chapters as how Benji got the orange dye and why Ranko never needed to fix the paint job or I never wrote about her needing to do that.

The permanent dye is a magic science product, it changed the information in the root of the hair to alter the hair color, it doesn't damage the hair as normal dyes and coloring treatments. Given by Shiaki (real hair color and age to be determined in a future chapter, after all if she has permanent dye she can change her color when she feels like) to make things easier to Benji and Ranko.

About Motoko having a pet cat, no information was ever given that the Aoyama family owns or not pets; let's ignore Tsuruko's bird who is a shikigami. I gave her a pet because is something that families can have, cats before dogs for the Aoyama family because cleanliness, noise and size issues.

I am sure that someone reading this fic had an experience similar to the one written here, it isn't uncommon to make up excuses to explain the death of a pet or a family member to a young child. And if you doubt of that think in all those tales that parents created to tell to kids from where the babies come from. It is similar enough.

About Motoko's reaction when recalling and describing to Ranko how it feels to 'kill' someone. I purposely made Motoko sound a bit unstable, in the past back in the samurai age it wasn't uncommon to find some samurais who got addicted on killing and/or cutting people, seduced by the power that it gives. A more recent parallel are certain types of serial killers and thrill seekers assassins.

Motoko is a very serious, disciplined and correct person, she trained kendo all her life, still there are things that can shake her up to her foundations, besides Motoko's foundations are a samurai's one so killing is part of it, it sounded natural to have Motoko wavering between the 'righteous and samurai' killing in battle, duel, command or in punishment for a offence or crime, and the bloodlust killing for the pleasure of cutting and taking a live.

This dilemma will be important to Motoko's development in the story since it is the core of the warrior's class is killing the enemy. It also sounded natural to Benji try to prevent Ranko from killing, hey if she gets the taste of killing and likes it, who in the world can stop her?

Not only that but based in books, documentaries, magazines, movies and other sources of information, as well my personal view of this, it sounded right to Benji and Motoko try to keep Ranko from killing, as they said once you are in there you can't ever leave and return to where you was, you can pretend that never happened but forever it changed you and you will never be as you was before.

Ranko's conclusion: As said before in this corner this conclusion came out of the blue, I didn't planned it to happen, things just flowed naturally on that direction, I said in the past that for me the story is a living thing, it changes even thought I didn't want or planned to, well this was one of the things that the story made it happen.

And it just happened, more or less like I typed Ranko thinking about how things were in the beginning, I admit that even I haven't thought much about that first death after so long and so many things had passed (not only in Outcast Ranma but in many other fics), originally that death was there to bring Benji and Nabiki closer, something to allow Nabiki to comfort Benji and then the two of them comfort the other from their own pains.

After that happened that first death was more like a small quickly forgotten event (as many in Ranmaverse), when it struck me I thought, 'Damn this thing makes everything make sense now.' And it did make things feel more right, making the whole plot smoother, explaining certain lines of dialogue (the chat with Shiaki where Benji reveals that he gave to Nabiki bugged diamond earrings), why giving way more pain to Nabiki (well she was the most exposed one too but this add a whole new light on things), and why Benji didn't took Ranma and hid in the middle of a forgotten mountain in the middle of Japan.

Let's admit that if he really wanted to disappear Benji would have taken Ranma to a hard to reach mountain and in there they could use their skills and weapons to build a cabin, even while building they could have bought camping gear to sleep while building the cabin, then they could make a small field of vegetables and fruits (buying seeds is quite cheap), building a greenhouse (a more time demanding project but easy to accomplish given their strength and Benji's hidden weapons technique), digging a well or any other kind of water reservoir (also depending if they are near a spring, river, lake or stream), they could hunt on their own for meat and if they want rice they could always jog to a nearby city/village/farm to buy some, same for medicines.

Doing all that they would effectively disappear and not need much contact with other people, depending of where they chose to build the cabin, the cabin wouldn't be seen by anyone in the ground thanks to the trees around it (let's remember that most of the land of Japan are mountains covered with tall trees considered unfit to be urbanized or to house large constructions), it might only be visible from above as from an airplane or satellite, and that requires lots of luck and a whole large arrangements of chances, like the person being looking down when flying over it, the sky being clear, being day, and many more.

This whole isolation idea was also one that crossed my mind while writing the chapters of this fic, I might do something about it or just let it be, I am not sure if anyone would like to read about Benji and Ranma hiding on the middle of nowhere living more or less like farmers/hermits, with the most action of it being Benji or Ranma hunting something for food. Well there is also the whole interpersonal side of the story that might attract some people, how the two of them alone in a cabin in the middle of the wild would act.

But I sidetracked from the main issue, revenge as Ranko concluded to be Benji's reason, might or might not be the real reason. Thought I admit that if it is, is a damn good one.

Weapon selection: Considering how close Japan is close of Russia and China is easier to criminals to get weapons that are Russian made or Chinese made Russian weapons, there is a reason for this selection of weapons. As mentioned in the story Benji is casting a smokescreen on his actions so he is dropping leads that will point to a different direction, the weapons are part of those leads.

Magic charms: Something that I was thinking about and then brought up in a PM. In the main story I was thinking on using charms and used some already. Benji isn't a mage, sorcerer, magician, spell caster and what other name you want to use to the class, even with access to some minor spells to perform medium or bigger ones Benji and any other non mage would need a charm (the main denomination that I and Benji's group will use to denominate any kind of items that allows the user to cast a spell as if he or she was a mage).

Anything can be 'charmed', looking back the Clow Cards in Card Captor Sakura can be considered charms since they store a spell but the person using the card provides the energy and the exact effect of the used spell; as shielding a group of children instead of the user when using the card Shield, using an effect similar to a fire ball or a flame thrower when using Firey, or making a fruit tree or a 'bending' a tree at will to shape it as you wish using Wood.

Since we are speaking about imbuing an item with magic the process can't be easy, so it was 'created' an school for mages who specialize in making magic items and charms, going further into this there are two main divisions in that school that should be considered after looking back at what I gathered from Negima, CCS and other animes, games, mangas and sources.

Spirit (shamanic, druidic) charms school, based on what is seen in CCS where each card/spell has a spirit, personality and individuality, as well Werewolf the Apocalypse, charms from his school are made with help of spirits (elementals, animal spirits, object spirit) related to the spell of the charm, those charms can store certain amounts magic energy/mana inside themselves for a certain period of time thanks to the spirit inside the charm, each charm is unique since every spirit is unique.

Two charms of the same effect can be completely different, one of them can be good and the other evil, cursed or chaotic, depending of the spirit inside the charm (the method of getting the spirit inside the charm also affects the charm, spirits forced and sealed inside a charm are most likely result in troublesome charms since the spirit is struggling and fighting inside the charm).

This school focuses on simplicity and functionality over concealment and discretion, requiring often a chant, command, or any other kind of vocal or manual gesture with the charm to use the spell.

Ex; Sakura throwing the card on the air, hitting with the staff, calling the name of the card and chanting something (the effect that she wants to achieve), to then the spirit of the card (on the explanation a spell imbued charm) proceed to replicate her request (degree of success can vary).

But in most cases the spell can be more reliable and more affected to the user's will.

Ex; Back to CCS, Sakura using the Windy card in several different ways to suit her needs at the time (binding opponents, gust of wind to lessen a fall, lift girls' skirts, okay she wouldn't do the last one but is an example).

The level of affinity of the spirit to the user affects the efficiency, as well how the spirit was placed in the charm.

Ex; If a spirit of a charm, a water spirit (elemental) on a charm for a water blasts charm (like the spell water ball from Ragnarok online) was forced to enter in the charm by the use of rituals and other magic means, the charm's strength won't be the maximum possible since the spirit isn't there willingly, it is trying to escape from it's prison and return to the ocean (or whatever large water body that it came from).

But if that water spirit (elemental) agreed to become part of the charm by whatever reason that it has, then the charm will reach the full potential, as the spirit inside will add it's strength to the charm and the spell.

Now to affinity between spirit and the user, looking at the real world, we don't work well with people that we don't like, we argue, things don't go well, you know the rest, it is the same with the charm. A good aligned spirit wouldn't get along with an evil user who wants to use the charm's magic to kill or cause needless harm.

Well more details and explanations on spirit charm school later, now to the second school.

Arcane (Hermetic, closer to traditional magic as we know it as well the magic from Nerima) charms school, closer related to the wands and other weapons/items from Diablo/Diablo 2 and D&D (and family) that have spells with charges on them, they are plain and simple spells infused on items and are only activated by command of the user (where spirit charms depending of the spirit inside the charm might activate on it's own to protect the user), more stable than the spirit counterparts but lack the chance of the charm protecting the user from harm from the spirit charms (each school has benefits and malefactions).

This school focus in the 'science' of magic and sorcery, focusing in more 'down to earth' and 'discreet' charms and magic items, a magic sword that magically poisons the enemy, a spear that never misses the target no matter how far it is and how the wind or if the target is running, normal shield that by magic can protect a much larger area or being much stronger, a ring that allows the user to read someone's mind when touching the target.

Because of the lack of 'spirit' on the charm, the charms of the arcane school have more 'straight forward' effects and spells lacking the malleability of the spirit class charms, but that is compensate by the lack of need of the chant/ritual/gesture combination of the spirit charms, requiring only a simple activation trigger; one word or one gesture.

Ex; Benji got a shooting glove (a glove imbued with a simple shooting spell), to activate the spell Benji has to do one of the two triggers (verbal or manual), since he is in the middle of a busy street Benji decides to use the manual trigger, raising his hand Benji makes a gun with his hand (I don't know the name of the gesture in English, think on the Leigan pose of Yusuke from Yu Yu Yakusho).

Willing some energy to the charm Benji prepares the shot and by flexing his thumb as a revolver's hammer he fires an energy ball of the size of a golf ball on his unsuspecting target, killing his target without anyone else around noticing what happened, they just see the guy falling down.

Now to a verbal scenario, same Benji, same shooting glove, different location; Benji is in the middle of a forest, he is facing a ravine, his right leg is broken and he can't cover the distance between the two edges on jump like that, in the other side, just a two kilometers from the ravine is the camp where the others are staying, but it is near a waterfall and shouting won't get their attention.

Benji finds a tree that is tall enough to make a bridge to make across the ravine, but it is on the other side of it, getting some distance Benji levels his open palm to the tree and aims at the bottom of the tree. "Shoot!" Benji exclaims activating the charm and firing an energy ball to his target (it doesn't matter the volume of the verbal trigger; even a whisper does the job).

The tree falls at Benji's direction and makes a bridge to the other side, now it is just keep his balance over the trunk to avoid a fall to his death and then walk for a while that he will get to the camp.

That is one example of a random active charm; yes there are passive charms that can be left always 'on'. An example is an anti-water charm (that would be so handy before and after being cursed); the user of an anti-water charm, Ranko is using an anti-water necklace charm. She can walk on the middle of a storm that the magic will repel any outside water from hitting her.

Passive charms are mostly supportive and minor defensive kinds, they take very little energy (magic/mana, ki, whatever) to work, something in this line (when put into numbers):

Motoko produces at every 5 seconds 20 points of ki, when using her anti-reptile charm (turtles are reptiles) that consumes 2 points of energy at every 5 seconds, Motoko can keep the charm working virtually forever without suffering to keep it active, as her natural energy regeneration feeds the charm with the excess energy that she doesn't need or use.

Now Benji using a choker of regeneration, a powerful passive charm that increases his natural healing, boosting it to werewolf's levels, Benji produces at every 5 seconds 14 points of ki, the choker requires 11 points of energy every 5 seconds to work, Benji will be able to keep it working but it might seriously affect his fighting abilities since 80 percent of his regained energy is taken by the charm, if in a fight if his energy gets too low and he needs to regain a certain amount to use a ki attack he will have to decide if he should remove the charm to regain energy faster or leave it on so all the muscle that he lost on his arm will regenerate.

Wow, that was a really long explanation and I am not even done with the subject, we will continue the subject later class dismissed move to your next subject.

Ranko and Motoko's conversation part 2: As Motoko said she is accessory to murder or at least covering up murder; anyway she is also a 'criminal' or accomplish by inaction. Knowing what I know about Motoko, based on her actions on the manga and the anime, if she was indeed exposed as criminal she would kill herself to save her family's honor.

The hermit option was added because her 'new' knowledge about death, that also means a new fear to add to the natural and instinctive fear of death that everyone has, that option is in the case that she doesn't find to courage to suicide and don't want to go to the jail and face her family as well the shame that it would bring to them.

The 'we all flee together' option was there because of what Motoko gathered from Benji, from what she heard about the escape from Nerima, if she either didn't find courage to suicide, face her family and the shame to be prosecuted, and wouldn't stand the isolation of being a lone hermit, she knew that Benji would offer her a chance of fleeing with him and Ranko/Ranma, and then vanish from Hinata and/or Japan.

The last scenario of Benji 'taking' her guilt by claiming a crime or blackmail that didn't happen is another possibility that she knew that she would have if exposed, Benji is already in trouble for several accounts of murder, adding a new of for blackmail is like adding a drop in the ocean, it won't make a change. Knowing what she knows, Motoko assumed that this would be the most likely scenario in case of her exposure.

Benji's night of killing: After careful deliberation I decided to not show most of the killings in the story, just some in-between or soon afterwards, a decision made by the fact that would take lots of time to create every character that would be killed (name, appearance, age, sex, profession and rank in the organization, clothing and many more details), that would be tiresome and boring (both for you and me), you don't want to know if the first guy that Benji killed had a mole on his nose or was a middle age hospital director with unusual tastes.

Key targets will later be detailed either by Benji or someone on his team, or by Nodoka or someone in her organization, the reasons behind the killings won't be named now, they are all connected to the organization but many of you don't want to know it victim number 10 was the organization accountant or a scientist.

This chapter was already long as it is, add more length with the corner, add some more with the extras that I like to add here under the corner. Detailing every kill, reason, planning, preparation, and more details that was show would make the chapter even longer.

Take as example the first kill of the night, if I show how Benji entered in the mansion, placed bombs all over the place, left, then moved to the place were he took the shots would be a lot more to add, and planting the bombs happened in a different day than the explosion.

Now more details of the night itself:

Minoru and Nagisa Himura: Originally they weren't there, but then I thought there should have some other Himura heir (Benji isn't from that family so he doesn't count) since Nodoka was officially expelled from the family when marrying Genma (thought in the story she is still connected to them unofficially, the expelling was to prevent Genma from raiding the family's fortune), so Ranma isn't the heir of the family or the future head.

In the original idea Benji was going to kill all the Himuras, other than himself and Ranma, but I thought that it was kind of unfair to do that, it was unnatural to not have a single child or teenager Himura other than Ranma in the family. So Nagisa was partially created to fill that gap of next heir and head of the family.

But I also didn't want to have children seeking revenge for their parents and family on Benji (thought it might still happen), so Minoru who didn't exist, well he did but he wasn't going to appear, he would be killed with the others in the mansion. I also wanted to show a more humane side of Benji during the night, since I thought that he was getting too unemotional and I was going to add someone who was weak and would need his help and compassion, making him to resurface his emotions (at least some of them), another gap that helped to make Nagisa.

Since I still haven't decided if what truly moves Benji is revenge and I felt that in this chapter Benji was detaching from his feelings, getting more colder and cruel (not really cruel but I can't find the right word for this one, as I keep saying Benji got wolf's instincts and was getting closer to the 'wolf' within him, but wasn't getting bestial), his feelings were getting less important in the night and after the argument with Ranko/Ranma. So Nagisa's character helped to get him some distance from the wolf.

I also felt that I needed to add a new character that was part of Benji's team, but I couldn't just show Benji meeting or contacting her without a good reason, and before Nagisa was completed as character the 'hurt little girl' concept character that I had in mind was the reason that Benji would visit that contact and 'introduce' her to the story. Nagisa will 'weight' in the story for a while and so will Rin, more about the two later in the story.

Eri's night: She isn't just a sex starving werewolf, since I wanted Eri to do more than entice Benji, provide him medicines and take care of Fuuka, I decided to give to Eri a couple of high profile assassinations that required a 'feminine touch' to work in places that Benji couldn't reach.

The 'maid operation' was the basic room service cliché slightly altered. Eri has two reasons to take the those particular assassinations, as mentioned in the story those two are old 'clients' of her, and as told in her background she was forced to work as prostitute, since the two would die anyway Eri decided to have the satisfaction of getting some revenge.

The raped school girl twist I added in the spur of the moment, her importance is to be decided, she is there just because the perversion of a rich old man, the voice altering is an energy based skill, the motions were to prepare her vocal cords and the energy.

The change of Eri's hair color is because a magic charm (arcane school), when worn it changes the hair of the user to a predetermined color (one charm, one color, different colors require different charms). Since it is less offensive than dying and easier to change back and forth Eri used the charms (available in the captured base).

Rin Shinoyama: An underclassman from Benji, not from Nabiki's ranks; one of the many girls who were all over Benji on his time as waiter in the Nekohanten, details of how Benji trusts on her to be revealed in a later time.

Confession scene: I had this idea of having Benji confessing to a priest who is about to kill for a while. So I made father Takayuki, a priest in a small church in one of Tokyo's districts, his crime is supplying children to Nodoka's organization (thought the uses that she has for them is still unknown, I know but Benji doesn't and that means neither you guys).

Benji's fight against the sumo guy: Not everything should go smoothly and according to Benji's plan, so I needed some different bodyguards to throw in to the pit, so entered the bearded guy, the sumo guy and then the underground guys, and yes I don't plan on getting on details with the last ones.

I know that I made the night quite messy, but I thought that would be more interesting to make it like that, I admit that was fun to write like that.

Morning and news: After a busy night emptying the black list of course the news as well the police would be going insane with everything (for different reasons), more details about it later. Anyway I thought that would be normal to the residents of the pension to watch the news or at least something on the TV that could be interrupted by a newsflash.

………**Extras scenes………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………**

Motoko is once again alone in her room, Ranko left to think by herself about what happened, what she thinks that learned and the consequences of everything. Motoko looks at the untouched tea on the younger girl's cup. "Broken heart?" Motoko whispered cleaning away the table, getting rid of left over tea that she wouldn't drink. Now in the kitchen Motoko dries the two cups that she served the tea on recalling about the conversation with Ranko.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"So after he accidentally killed that guy Benji locked himself on his room." Ranko said to Motoko telling her the tale of Benji's first kill, an unintended accidental one. "I admit with shame now that back then I didn't care much about it, but…well let's call her Gin."

"Silver?" Motoko asked confused. "It suits her, besides it isn't good for any of us that you learn her real name." Ranko replied defensively. "With what I already told you adding to that would be dangerous since you might slip to someone or by accident learn something that you shouldn't."

'You know Ranko then you shouldn't have told me about Benji killing that man by accident.' Motoko said to herself but nodded agreeing. "Gin got very worried about him. Not that we noticed that either." Ranko continued. "Not much perceptive right?" Motoko asked teasingly, she just couldn't resist. "Actually we are more indifferent." Ranko added ashamed. "I had so much trouble in my life that as long that wasn't with me I didn't care."

Motoko's smile go away at Ranko's word, sure Ranko looked ashamed for thinking like that and having that behavior, but it was still cruel to hear. "I don't recall how many days had passed since the incident." Ranko resumed the story. "But one morning Benji looked much, much better as if nothing had happened, as if he never killed that boy, and Gin, well Gin was practically glowing, happy and content, you know that kind of aura as if something really, really good happened to you and filled you with a new life."

Motoko nodded understanding the concept. "Gin entered on Benji's room, of course I learned that way after it happened." Ranko explained. "What they said I can't imagine; I have an idea of what they did but I don't like to think about it. But when it happened, the reason that Benji was added to the hunt list, at least the reason that I think that it is it haven't happened."

"So you think that any feelings that she had for him until then were genuine?" Motoko asked seriously. Ranko nodded confirming. "I really don't want to think that she was that cold and manipulative, I mean she looked happier." Ranko said seriously. "I mean truly happy, I might be wrong but it seemed that they were lovers that only didn't come open with it. I can't imagine that she was after a sample from Benji right from the beginning when he wasn't as trained and strong as he is now."

Motoko could understand Ranko's doubts and confusion over the subject, as well her fears, if at least for Benji there was genuine feelings between him and Gin, then he would be devastated at her betrayal.

………**Sailor Moon Twist Part 2………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………**

With a massive headache Haruka wakes up, her vision blurred and covered by large smears of color. "What in name of anything hit me?" Haruka asked in a hoarse voice. "We are calling it 'Ice giant'." A voice that Haruka recognized as Ami's answered. "First he grabbed your right leg, then slammed you against the ground and then threw you away with such force that we didn't saw where you landed."

With her vision starting to get normal she begins to see the faces and the surroundings in more details. "Or in who you landed." Minako chuckled covering her mouth, looking at Haruka suspiciously. "In who I landed?" Haruka asked confused. "Well we found you wearing this." Michiru said showing to Haruka Benji's jacket, not that they knew who the owner was.

"And you were found far closer than the projected ballistic trajectory that you took would make you fall." Ami added. "And most of your wounds were healed too, the leg that should have been broken by the giant's grip wasn't broken, the cuts and bruises on your body from being slammed on the ground, not even the head trauma. And we are sure of the last because your hair still is stained with blood, well now caked in dried blood."

Haruka reaches to her head and feels the mass of dry blood and hair. "It will be a pain to get rid of this." Haruka sighed. "Just that?" Rei asked confused. "I was expecting something more extreme."

"I recall passing out when hitting someone, at least I think that I faintly recall impacting on something hard but at the same time soft." Haruka said sitting up from the futon on Rei's living room. "I also recall warmth and worry, after that everything is blurry so I think that I fainted then. I just can't get extreme when the little that I remember after a world of mind shattering pain is a mysterious, gentle and soothing warmth wrapping me."

"Well I can kind of understand that." Makoto commented. "We think that your mysterious benefactor is at least good, I mean as one of the good guys." "But?" Haruka asked sensing a but coming. "He entered inside the negation field." Ami said seriously. "And that means that he isn't a regular person. As we concluded from our previous battles the negation field removes anyone without powers from the area inside it."

"So that means that whoever helped me has some kind of power or ability that transcend the normal human abilities." Haruka concluded. "Yes, something like that." Ami replied. "We don't know everything about the field so we might be wrong, there could be unpowered individuals who are immune to the ban of the negation field."

"And the only evidence that we have is that jacket." Michiru commented. "But the pockets are empty, not even a scrap of paper inside, nothing that could lead us to the owner." "Let me see it." Haruka said to Michiru, Michiru hands the jacket to her lover.

"Isn't this a tailored jacket?" Haruka asked while studying the jacket. "It is a bit big to be from a standard size." "And you concluded that from putting it back on?" Usagi asked confused.

"Haruka does buy once and a while men wear." Michiru explained. "Then she has them fitted to her." "Exactly, this one is larger than the standard L size." Haruka added. "And has more inner pockets than the standard bought ones too." "Sadly love I also figured that out." Michiru commented. "There isn't a tag or any kind of identification of the tailor, and the design is rather common too."

"And how long you plan on wearing that?" Minako asked teasingly, sure the sight of Haruka on the oversized jacket was nice but she couldn't resist the urge to tease the other blonde. Haruka doesn't say anything but takes out the jacket. "Given the storm and the fact that you worn the jacket for a while we didn't find any fiber, hair or DNA on it." Ami added. "But something on it is making Luna and Artemis not wanting to be in the same area of it."

"It smells like wolf in there!" Artemis shouted from the outside. "There aren't any wolves in here!" Minako shouts back. "Just us pretty soldiers!" "It smells like wolf in there." Luna said seriously. "And it is strong. A male scent." "Male scent?" Usagi asked confused.

"Yes, powerful and strong male scene." Luna said. "Don't blush!" Artemis shouted, not that the girls could see the blush of the black cat and the white cat's reaction to it. Haruka sniffs the jacket. "I don't smell anything." Haruka commented. "Well other than a hint of perfume." "Let me try it." Michiru said to her lover. "I am better with perfumes than you."

Michiru takes the jacket and lightly smells it. "Yes, I do know this one." Michiru said. "Obsession by Calvin Klein, the men fragrance. Well our mystery man have good taste, I give him that." "I don't think that it is really helpful." Usagi commented confused and embarrassed, confused with everything and embarrassed at the two senshis smelling a used jacket from a total and unknown stranger.

"It isn't all that helpful." Michiru said. "However it narrows down who could be wearing this. We know that he is tall and has broad shoulders, that because the fact that the jacket is tailored, now adding to the fact that he likes Obsession, looking at the jacket we can tell that is something that fits working in a office as well using it casually, so everything indicates that he wears that perfume on a daily basis."

"So?" Minako and Usagi asked confused and curious. "It means that if we find a man that fits all the requirements that Michiru just listed we might learn the identity of the mystery rescuer." Ami patiently explained to them. "Of course given a proper margin of error, as well adding the final piece of the puzzle."

Michiru nodded agreeing; now even Haruka is confused. "Your rescuer Haruka." Michiru said seriously. "He had a rocket launcher. He not only had one but was carrying when you landed on him or near him, then used on the giant giving us the edge to Usagi finish him."

"So above everything that we listed before whoever rescued Haruka has access to military grade weaponry." Ami added. "So the guy is from the army?" Usagi asked confused. "No." Rei replied harshly. "And it JSSDF, ground defense." "What I said Usagi is that whoever he is he has access to military weaponry." Ami explained. "But with enough money and contacts one can buy that kind of weapons."

"So he is a rich man who likes weapons?" Minako asked confused. "Or maybe from a secret non-governmental but with government founding organization that was created to fight against youmas and other kinds of evil menaces." "This isn't manga!" Rei exclaimed. "But what other explanation would fit the requirements for the bazooka?" Makoto asked. "We believe that the mysterious man is a good guy, any other way to get those weapons is by illegal means."

"Well you do have a point there." Rei commented. "But a good guy can be forced to buy ordinance from an illegal dealer when knowing that he can't get them from any legal sources." Ami commented. "Like that Punisher guy from American comics." Ami blushes fiercely as everyone in the room looks at her.

"How you know about that character?" Rei asked surprised. "My mother is a fan." Ami answered. "So she has a collection and when I was younger I started reading out of curiosity." "And then got hooked to a tall, handsome, dark haired man wearing tight clothes." Minako said teasingly.

"And how you know about that?" Rei asked to Minako. "I lived in England; we could easily find American comics there." Minako answered. "Strong, muscular and handsome man in spandex, why a girl wouldn't like it?" Minako turns to Ami and purrs teasingly. "But Ami-chan I am so surprised that you like of such violent and dark guy."

"I don't like him!" Ami squealed embarrassed. "I just red when young!" "You are denying too much Ami-chan." Minako purred wrapping one arm around Ami and lightly drawing circles on Ami's cheek with her finger. "You really, really love that dark and sinister guy."

"Rei I will borrow your bathroom for a while." Haruka said while standing up. "I need to remove this blood from my hair before Michiru, Hotaru and I leave." "Sure, go right ahead." Rei answered while watching Ami get as red as a stop sign under Minako's teasing.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

In the bathroom Haruka let her hair soak under the showerhead so the dried blood will soften and then she will be able to wash it away. She haven't told everything to the others, she had more recollections than what she told them, she was pretty sure that she was fed some medicine, since she refused to drink on her own she was forced to drink by other means.

Part of her mind wanted to get angry at the fact that she was kiss fed, but she really didn't felt any anger, in any other circumstances a deep kiss with tongue involved that wasn't shared with Michiru would enrage her, but Haruka knew that the in those circumstances it was more like receiving mouth-to-mouth in CPR, something needed to save her life.

Haruka can recall the pain, semi-conscious and numbed the pain was worse than anything that she ever felt and she had died two times already, and she can recall how that weird fruit-herbal tasting medicine that whoever saved her made her drink removed the pain from her as soon it filled her mouth.

She could live with a stolen kiss from a stranger, seemed a unfit price for her life and her health, and she also got a nice jacket out of the deal, what did bother her a little is the fact that she somehow felt that the guy that saved her knew her, she couldn't get rid of that feeling.

"Haruka you need help?" Michiru asked to her lover. "I wouldn't complain." Haruka replied. "Removing this blood will be troublesome by myself. Why you girls didn't washed it away while was still wet?"

"Because it was frozen solid when we found you." Michiru answered. "After wards we got busy checking on your health and then discussing this whole mystery rescuer guy issue."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"What are you girls doing in my room?" Benji asked angrily when finding Kaola and Kitsune inside his room. "Tama-chan entered here." Kitsune answered quickly. "I placed glass panels under the paper squares of the door, sealed the ceiling boards and added a net on the window." Benji said in a flat tone. "She can't enter here!"

Kitsune and Kaola squealed since he shouted the last sentence. "And the door was locked!" Benji continued. "I got an odd reading on my radar." Kaola said showing to Benji what he thinks as the 'dragon radar' from Dragon Ball. Benji sees a blinking spot on it. "And what that thing is supposed to detect?" Benji asked raising an eyebrow.

"Anime, manga, hentai and games." Kaola answered with a large grin. 'It detected my doujin, anime and game collection?' Benji mused. "So you have any of the above mentioned?" Kitsune asked teasingly. "I have all of them!" Benji exclaimed kicking the fox woman out of his room and then pushing Kaola out of his room. "If any of you ever enter on my room again." Benji said bearing his fangs. "I will rip our hearts out, fire roast them with salt and garlic and eat them."

"EEKKKKkkkk…..!" Kitsune squealed at the combination of fangs, threat, glare and menacing aura. "It is that tasty?" Kaola asked confused. "I like it." Benji answered. "You won't." "And this is tasty?" Kaola asked showing to Benji a bottle. "AAHHH!!" Benji exclaimed. "That isn't food!" Benji tears the bottle from Kaola's hand. "That is my Obsession bottle! This is expensive! This is perfume! Stupid girl!"

"So what you would do if I threatened to tell to the others about you having a hentai collection in your room?" Kitsune asked teasingly. "I would tell you to go fuck yourself." Benji answered harshly. "What I have in my room concerns only me and no one else."

"Come on Benji what would Motoko-chan think about that?" Kitsune asked. "That is a natural thing to a healthy man having interest in the body of a healthy and attractive woman." Benji answered. "And I don't care if you tell then that I own hentai, I don't care about what they think anyway and at least I am not the one used as playground by the bartenders when dead drunk. Now what would that do to your reputation here?"

Kitsune froze; sure she expected the non-caring attitude but not Benji hitting that low bellow the belt. "How it feels being the receiving end of blackmail?" Benji asked provocatively. "Unlike you Kitsune I don't care about my reputation or keeping face." Unable to come with any witty reply Kitsune grabs Kaola's collar and run away from there.

Benji sighs and moves back to his room. "That was cruel." Motoko said from the hall. "When you arrived?" Benji asked a bit surprised. "I was helping Ranko with her studies." Motoko answered. "Well Motoko Kitsune needs to learn that not everyone will bend for blackmail." Benji said putting his perfume bottle over his computer desk.

"So what you said about her is truth?" Motoko asked seriously. "As far the rumors say." Benji answered. "That adding to the known fact that she drinks herself unconscious I don't really doubt of the veracity of it either." "So you claim that don't do that?" Motoko asked.

'Motoko I only drank way pass my limit only once." Benji answered. "I was nineteen years old and leaving a boarding school, my friends bought and gave me lots of liquor, different kinds too, I drank a lot and smoked a whole pack of cigarettes while putting them out in the back of my hand to show how beyond pain I was. I was also stronger you know, with half bottle of strong liquor, I lifted a girl that weighted around fifty kilos as if she was a doll, and I was sited in the back of a moving truck and she was trying to get in, so it wasn't a situation that I could get much strength in normal circumstances, the last time that I remember from that night is carrying on my arms a guy who weighted around ninety kilos and throwing him up and down, I barely felt his weight."

"And how it ended?" Motoko asked surprised with the story. "Well my friend told me in the next day that after that we returned to the school." Benji answered. "Well four guys helped me, two on each arm, each time that the others called me I would wave one arm and send both of them away. At one moment I fell down, buried my nails to the asphalt of the road, stood up by myself and walked one hundred meters alone in a reasonably straight line, then I sited in the edge of the road and passed out, well we were in the middle of the country side, the school was few kilometers away from the nearest city to we had to walk back, I sited literally in the end of the road, behind me there was a groove, it was a reasonable inclination and around ten meters bellow the road. So I fell back, rolled down the groove and landed on a broken and rusty barbed wire fence."

"You got hurt?!" Motoko asked shocked. "Not even a scratch." Benji answered. "My shirt was dirty and muddy, torn in several places but I didn't got a single scratch on me, later my friends called one of the teachers and it took around ten guys to get out of the groove and carry me to the teacher's truck."

"That many?" Motoko asked surprised. "Motoko I am a man, men weight more than women, I weight ninety five kilos." Benji answered. "And it was easier to them like that; sharing the weight between ten guys is easier than for two."

"That is true." Motoko replied. "Before that I wasn't all that fond of the taste of alcohol. I drank little, but when younger, my early teens, like any other boy I wanted to do things that men do, so drink was one." Benji said with a wistful smile. "At my fifteenth birthday I got the permission to drink from my mother in the small party that we had, her boyfriend at time and a friend of ours gave a lot of liquor, you know the old and unusual ones that you keep stashed to drink slowly, I drank around one bottle and a half of it in small shots of every bottle. I was a bit tipsy when I left, tipsy but happy. Anyway years later with the experience that I had thanks to my mother, I knew how to drink and how not to drink, since I prefer not to drink certain things straight I avoid them, I drink soda over alcohol, tastes better. That one time Motoko was because was a farewell from that school. My friends did that for me, so I decided to go all out and see what would happen, since that I avoided even more liquor. In that way I also avoid problems when drunk."

"Well I can't deny that you are a better drinker than Kitsune." Motoko commented. "But saying what you said to her was a bit harsh." "They broke into my room Motoko." Benji replied. "Sure I can buy that Kaola came to check on the signal from my room, but Kitsune came here for other reasons, I don't put stealing behind her."

Motoko chuckled uneasy, she also couldn't put stealing behind Kitsune, and in matter of fact the eternal fox is quite capable of that. "And she tried to use blackmail on me." Benji added. "That is a crime, if I wanted I could have her arrested or at least sue for that. Not everyone will fall for her 'charm' or wits. There are people like me."

"People who strike back." Motoko said understanding. "And some people would be way worse than you, I am sure that someone with something really worth of hiding could kill Kitsune." Benji nodded agreeing. "See my line of thought?" Benji asked. "You can't do a criminal act without risking being killed for it. Especially something as blackmail."

Motoko nodded agreeing. "Changing the subject what about that Obsession thing?" Motoko asked. "It is a perfume." Benji answered. "I mean I can buy another if this bottle broke or ended but letting Kaola do whatever she likes isn't right, spoiling her like that is bad."

Motoko nodded agreeing, they do give too much freedom to Kaola, but how can they fully control her when none of them are related to her or even her guardian. "Wait a minute there!" Motoko exclaimed. "Kaola is underage, she is from another country, but who is her guardian here in Japan?"

"I don't know the answer for that." Benji replied. "But is a good question, you should ask to Haruka." Motoko nodded and walks away, Benji looks at the lock and pick his cell phone, he would need a better lock.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Every tenant runs to the living area in their sleeping clothes, Benji and Motoko armed respectively with a revolver and a katana. "What was that?" Keitaro asked confused and also scared, everyone was woken by a loud noise that they couldn't connect to anything. "No idea." Benji answered. "Better than that where you got that thing?" Naru asked pointing to the revolver on Benji's hands.

"This is an old heirloom." Benji answered. "But is useful for protection, but forget about this, we should investigate the source of that noise." "I agree." Motoko said with a nod. "If is a criminal we must apprehend him." "We should call the police in that case." Shinobu said. "But calling them just because we heard some odd noise will only annoy them." Kitsune commented.

"You guys stay here." Benji said to them. "Motoko and I can go investigate, Ranko you stay too so if anything happen they aren't defenseless." "Okay." Ranko nodded. "Why just you and Motoko-chan?" Naru protested. "Naru-senpai, the two of us have martial arts training and we are both armed." Motoko explained. "So we are better suited to investigate, you want to endanger not only yourself but Shinobu-chan by coming with us?"

"Well no." Naru muttered, but she was curious too. "It is decided then." Benji said. "But I think that will be better if they stay in the kitchen, there is only two ways to enter there so is much safer there." "I agree." Motoko replied. "You follow us for now but keep distance, also don't make noise." The group nod and follow the two brunettes. "How much shots you have?" Motoko asked in a low whisper. "Many." Benji answered in the same way.

Ten minutes later Benji and Motoko are walking on the darkened halls. "This place needs new wiring." Benji commented, the darkness wasn't a problem for him, the curse granted him a great night vision, but Motoko didn't had it. "Yeah." Motoko replied walking a couple steps behind Benji holding a candle. "I still don't understand why you don't need one."

"Good eyes." Benji answered with a smile. "Besides that candle gives away your position." "I know but I prefer this than hitting things on the dark." Motoko said looking around, but the circle of light around her wasn't all that wide and she couldn't see all that far.

Benji raises his hand and Motoko halts at the same moment, she wasn't used or knew all hand gestures from the military but she knew that the one that he just did was to stop. Benji points to a door and Motoko nods, she blows the candle removing that small source of light, she stays in one side of the door and Benji in the other.

Benji gestures to her to stay. "What does that mean?" Kaola asked loudly startling both Benji and Motoko. "It meant stay here in silence that I will go check the suspicious noise ahead." Benji said angrily. "We told you to stay in the kitchen." Motoko said seeing everyone else there. "Sorry but they left and I had to come." Ranko said in an apologetic tone.

"I am really feeling like shooting you." Benji said to the group. "What part of might be too dangerous and you aren't fit to check out, you guys didn't got?" "You don't order us." Naru replied with a smirk. "It might be true but I have seniority here." Benji answered. "I am twenty three years old. Other than Keitaro none of you are old enough to be considered adults and fully responsible for your actions."

"It doesn't matter we want to come and we came." Naru replied. "Naru-senpai we are worried about your safety." Motoko said seriously. "Listen Motoko-chan, I really like you but you are siding too much with him lately." Naru said to the swordswoman. "First was that whole non-violence issue, then the rent and him living here, there was also small things too but I won't name then, and now this."

"I am 'siding' with him as you said because I believe that the course of action that he suggests is the right one." Motoko replied calmly. "As far we know whoever broke in might be a killer looking for victims." "And that is why we rely on you to protect us." Naru commented smirking.

"Forget it Motoko." Benji said to the swordswoman. "If is a killer we protect the innocent and let the others get killed." "And who exactly are the innocent?" Motoko asked confused. "Shinobu, Kaola and Keitaro." Benji answered. "At least I know that Keitaro only followed because he was worried about the others. And Ranko can watch over herself."

"That is true." Ranko said from the end of the line. "You would let some freak have his way with us without doing anything to help?!" Kitsune asked in horror. "If teaches you a lesson about obeying orders, then the answer is yes." Benji answered casually. "If you don't learn from love you learn from pain."

"I fail to see love in your actions." Naru said in an acid tone. "I told you nicely to wait in the kitchen right? That was in the love area, now is the pain area." Benji replied. "And shut up, you are giving away our position and presence to whatever is out there." Naru fumes but remain in silence. 'Man that felt good.' Benji thought with a smile. 'Maybe I should crack the whip on Naru when she is being bitchy more often.'

Shinobu holds scared on Keitaro's shirt, the halls at the middle of the night, in the dark was very scary, anything could jump from the darkness and attack her, and when something hits her head Shinobu shrieks as loud as she can. Benji and Motoko spun on their heels ready to attack. "Easy." Ranko said also surprised. "It is that damn turtle, she landed on Shinobu's head."

Hiccupping Shinobu cries. "I though that I was going to die…" She wailed crying on Keitaro's arms. "And this is why I said that we should stay in the kitchen." Keitaro said to Naru and Kitsune. "We are too far gone to return." Kitsune replied. "It was just a fright."

"This time." Keitaro said seriously. "What if in the next someone does get hurt? What you say to Shinobu's parents, or Kaola's?" Kitsune can't answer and remain in silence, but she found that side of Keitaro quite attractive. Benji moves ahead, he were forced to wait too long, whatever he heard might be long gone. Motoko follows Benji deciding to leave the others to their own devices.

"Something feels odd." Benji commented. "I can't put my finger on it but…" "Wait don't run after us!" Motoko exclaimed as the other run at their direction. "There is something wroOOOOONNNGGG………….!!!!!!!!" The combined weight of all tenants plus turtle is too much and the floor gives under them.

As they fall Ranko noticed that the floor boards didn't broke, but opened as a trap door. "Argh!" Benji exclaimed landing hard over his hands. "ACK!" He shouted as Motoko impacts on his back forcing him to hit the floor. Keitaro screeches as most of the girls land over him, just Ranko landed neatly on her feet.

"…I can't fell my back…" Benji muttered. "I can't feel my behind." Motoko groaned. 'I do.' Benji thought. "Ah!" Motoko exclaimed realizing where she was sited on. "I am sorry!" Motoko jumps from Benji's back and quickly bows apologizing. "It is okay." Benji said. "At least you didn't got hurt."

"Thanks." Benji said taking Motoko's hand, accepting her offer to stand. "Is anyone hurt?" Benji asked brushing himself. "I think that I fractured my spleen." Keitaro said in pain under a tall pile of girls. "Then you are fine, spleens doesn't fracture." Benji commented.

Benji looks up and doesn't see their entry point. "It was a kind of trap door." Ranko said to Benji. "It closed after we fell." "At least there are two possible ways out." Motoko commented after looking around. "Following the hall we should find an exit." "It will be a long night." Benji commented. "I just know it."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"If you open that mouth of yours to complain again I will shut you for the rest of your sorry life!" Benji hissed dangerously to Naru, with his revolver barrel bellow her chin. "I don't hear any more of how your feet hurt, or that you are thirsty or that you have to go to the bathroom."

"Benji you are being too harsh." Ranko said to Benji. 'Keep doing it, by the love of god keep doing it.' she thought with a inner satisfaction, she was also tired of Naru's bitching. "While I agree that Naru-senpai is straining everyone, including my nerves." Motoko said in a serious tone. "Threats like that are a bit extreme." 'But I don't care as long she shuts up.' Motoko thought. 'Kami she is so annoying, if Benji didn't ram her to the wall I would.'

"Benji-san I know that you are angry and moody since she made us follow you and Motoko-chan, and then she made us fall on this trap and then complained non-stop for one hour but…" Keitaro stops to think about what he is saying. 'She beat me everyday since I arrived, treats me like scum, played with my feelings, and consider me less than a man, why I am trying to defend her?' "You know I am doing such poor job in trying to defend her that I will stop it before I get her killed." Keitaro finally said.

"Smart idea." Ranko and Motoko said as one. "Benji-san, I know that we were wrong, especially Naru-senpai." Shinobu said tearfully. "But she is turning blue." "Well I guess that Shinobu-chan is right, besides she is about to make a mess and I am not wearing shoes." Benji commented releasing Naru and walking away.

"What you mean by making a mess?" Motoko asked following Benji with Ranko, while Kitsune and Keitaro move to Naru. "Strangulation is a nasty thing, plus she was scared, now that she is relived…" Benji commented with a grin. "Naru!" Kitsune exclaimed in disgust. "I can't stop it!" Naru exclaimed in horror and shame.

"You are evil." Ranko commented. "You know that she will never forgive you for that right?" "As if I care." Benji shrugged. "In my top ten of the pension Naru is not even there of so low in the ranking. Sure she is pretty but her personality is too much for her appearance make up to."

Ranko nodded agreeing, Motoko does the same but mentally. "Hurry up or we leave you behind." Benji shouted to the others now distant, they could hear Naru crying, sobbing and hiccupping. "Another dead end." Ranko said after they enter in a large room in the end of the hall. "What can we do? In the other way is a plain dead end too."

"Maybe I can cut the wall." Motoko said unsheathing her sword. Motoko charges at the furthest wall and strikes as hard as she can. "What?!" Motoko exclaimed shocked to only see sparks flying from the slash; the wood from the wall wasn't even scratched. "I can cleave steel with that strike!"

Benji moves to a different wall and touches it. "This isn't regular wood." Benji said moving with his palm on the wall. "It is old wood, very old, infused with energy, enough to make it harder than steel. I heard about this kind of thing, I thought that I was going to see it eventually but never thought that I would see in this pension."

"Then I will break it." Ranko said cracking her knuckles. "Your energy control isn't all that good Ranko." Benji said before Ranko attacked a wall. "In that area Motoko is above you." Ranko pouted and looks at Benji. "So what we do? If brute force doesn't break it, Motoko can't cut it either, what we do?" Ranko asked.

"I might be able to cut it." Motoko said. "But that would require a lot of energy, strength and my Shisui might not take it." Benji stops walking and raps his knuckles in the wall. "I will do it." Benji said. "I was taught something; I never performed in anything other than ice blocks."

Benji takes out his watch and hands it to Motoko. "Hold on that for me." Benji said. "I don't want to bust it." Motoko nodded and she and Ranko get some distance. Benji cracks his knuckles looking at the wall.

Shiaki wasn't a bad teacher, actually before the hunt she was someone that Benji respected, thought and hard to understand, in a way he recalled him of Genkai of Yu Yu Hakusho, strict, bordering the tyranny, but a source of precious techniques and knowledge long forgotten by many.

In a way Benji understood Shiaki, why she gave to many parties and lived what many would call a sinful life, she had her share of killing and those parties was an attempt to wash away the weight of them, even her attitude sometimes felt like a mask, just sometimes, there was times that Benji felt that she does enjoy killing.

"**Remember don't acknowledge anything between you and the point that you want to hit****, hit hard and let all the energy destroy everything on the way to the point." **Benji could easily recall Shiaki's words. **"Of course that this is a very advanced technique, you need years of practice to get only the strong bones to hold the impact of the rebound on your arm, however with months you can get bones strong enough to shatter bones from other creatures and even don't get damaged when punching by some millimeters of metal, anything thicker than that and you can kiss your bones goodbye."**

"And do not hit with the heel of the hand." Benji whispered. "It is easier to heal the knuckles and the long hand bones than the small bones of the wrist and in the heel." Motoko looks at Ranko who shrugs; she also doesn't know what is going to happen. Benji takes a deep breath and then punches the wall with all his strength.

"Benji if brute force would work I can easily break that wall." Ranko said. Benji remains in silence, pulling back his fist and taking another deep breath. Then splinters fly in the air and a web of cracks appears from the impact point and spread out. "It broke!" Motoko exclaimed surprised. "Just cracked." Benji said, they don't see him looking at his right hand. 'Crack quite badly.'

Benji hits the wall now with his left hand increasing the cracks, then he hits with the right hand again, working on a rhythm on pounding the wall with his fists, each time making more wood fly. Motoko and Ranko cheer as Benji works. "Hey what is going on?" Kitsune asked as the group arrives.

"Benji is breaking the wall." Motoko exclaimed excited. "Ouch!" She exclaimed feeling something hitting her in the face. Motoko looks down thinking that was splinter. "It is quite big." She commented picking it up. She frowns when feeling the splinter wet and warm. Motoko looks closer and sees that it isn't wood but bone.

"Benji stop!" Motoko exclaimed, but Benji hits the wall once again with his right fist as hard as he can, drops of blood hit Motoko and Ranko's faces. Benji pulls back and sees the wall breaking in shattered pieces of wood. Bones can be seen on his knuckles and his hands are bleeding profusely, thick drops raining on the wood floor.

'Now it is broken.' Benji thought feeling the shattered bones on his hands. 'But I can still force them around.' "Anyway let's get out of here." Benji said to them. "Why did you do it?!" Motoko asked running after Benji. "There was other ways!" "It will heal." Benji replied. "Don't worry about it Motoko."

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After that they finally found the way back to the pension, further searching didn't revealed anything out of ordinary but Keitaro isolated that hall of the old building. Benji left to have his hands treated by Eri, no one saw him leaving, and as they cared everything was back to normal.

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Author explanations corner part 2:

Some of the scenes of the Sailor Moon part can be incorporated to the main story, the events from the Sailor Moon part take place immediately after the last scene of the Sailor Moor part on the previous chapter, therefore a handful or more days before the incidents of this chapter.

Obsession for men: I do own a bottle of that perfume and like it, but is quite expensive here, anyway Benji owns one too there. Since Michiru is rich, and based on her background I thought that she would know more about perfume and cosmetics than any other senshi (hey she is gorgeous and I am more than sure that she goes a little extra length to keep herself like that).

Benji's jacket: Based on a chart of average height in Japan Benji is far above the average height, so finding clothes is more a chore than anything, therefore the need to have some stuff tailor made, specially suits, they fit best when tailored and fit.

Haruka is also quite tall for Japanese standards, while shorter than Benji she would also need to tailor or fit some stuff, specially men clothes, so she should be able to tell if was fitted or tailored.

Wolf's scent: Now that was taken from the review, I just couldn't resist it.

Haruka's reaction (just for the record from Sailor Moon): As stated on the story, she was on the verge of dying, suffering the worse pain that she ever felt in her life, the kiss was nothing when compared to taking the medicine that made it all go away. You would get mad at a lifeguard who gave you mouth-to-mouth to save your life when you drowned? (In any other scenario than suicide)I made her keep the kiss part a secret mostly of embarrassment.

Ami and the Punisher (almost sound like a fairytale or a fic): I wanted to someone to throw in a example of a 'good' guy who have to buy weapons from illegal sources, since Ami is reasonably wealthy (rumors go that very, very wealthy), her mother is a doctor and father a traveling artist, so she fit in the role, I gave to Ami's mother (Aki in most of my fics but in here unnamed) the collection of the Punisher's comics.

For anyone curious she got the first when in college and liked, since then she buys to read on her little free time. Ami red out of curiosity and liked it too, Minako lived in England so she would at least know a little about it when the others doesn't.

Benji mistreating the Love Hina girls: Patience has limits, so Benji decided 'no more mister nice guy'. Thought he is still nice enough when you compare to what he does to the others that get on his way (Nodoka, Nabiki, Kasumi, Ranma/Ranko, Kuno family, Fuuka's underlings, and the list goes on).

Rumors about Kitsune: It is a known fact that many men (ages vary greatly) get women (age also varying greatly) drunk to take advantage of then (various forms of advantage not only sex), so when a woman (Kitsune) drink herself unconscious in a regular basis on bars all over Hinata it isn't too much of a stretch to think that some men would take advantage of her drunk self (let's face it Kitsune is pretty, specially with open eyes).

In a perfect world (Love Hina's original world) of course that would never happen, but this is a closer to real world setting, if was a perfect anime world setting Benji wouldn't kill anyone, Eri wouldn't be captured, sold as slave and used as prostitute, Nodoka wouldn't hunt Benji, Ranma and the other cursed ones.

The veracity of those rumors are to be decided (it can end it all being just something that someone said to brag that did and that snowballed to a huge rumor of Kitsune being free playgrounds after the second bottle, or it might be revealed to be truth and that Kitsune does anything if one give her a bottle of anything).

The Hinata-sou night incident: I won't get into details about what caused the noise, the chapter is long enough as it is; anyway it has some importance to the future. And now short explanations about the walls.

They are made of ancient wood infused with lots of ki, so it takes more than fists and steel to put them down. Benji's technique work by sending the ki as powerfully as he can inside a point inside the wood, the point of less resistance or just someplace inside to let the ki explode weakening the entire thing.

Here is the triangle of Benji, Motoko and Ranko; Benji is weaker than Ranko and less skilled than Motoko both in sword technique and energy (ki) control, Motoko is weaker than Benji and Ranko, but she is more skilled with energy and sword than both of them, Ranko is stronger than Benji and Motoko, and more skilled in martial arts than Benji and Motoko, but is weaker in energy control than Benji and Motoko.

But to break the wall it needed a balance between strength and energy control, since Benji is in the between the two in those requirements he is the one to do it (Ranko/Ranma haven't learned to use ki attacks yet, in the main story the training didn't allow him to master Benji's original ki attack, much less Ranma's original Mouko Takabisha).


	10. Vanishing trick

Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic. This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Love Hina I don't own or any of the characters of those shows. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed: Benji Himura.

This story begins in the Ranmaverse somewhere in the middle of the events of the chapter thirteen, actually between the release of Hinako and the events of the Gamble King events.

In the Love Hina timeline in the manga it stars after the chapter twenty six but before the chapter twenty seven.

This is a crossover so both stories casts or at least part of them will interact and there will be changes on both stories and on the plotline of Outcast Ranma. For anyone following the main story this scenario doesn't follow the same 'timeline' from the main story, it works on the line that timeline show on the story is the original one.

"Text" Talked sentences.

'Text' Thoughts.

-Text- Sounds effects.

(Text) Talked sentences in a foreign language as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

**Text**: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

_Text_: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

"_Text"_ Alteration in the voice, not in the tone but the voice itself.

Chapter ten: Vanishing trick

Benji wakes with the sound of someone tapping on his window, with a groan Benji looks around and sees one man on his late fifties leaning on the closed window and knocking on it. Benji sits up and opens the door. "Anything wrong officer?" Benji asked sleepily.

"God what stench!" A younger policeman exclaimed. "Are you drunk mister?" The older policeman asked. "I did drink a lot yesterday." Benji answered. "Then I came to my car and decided to sleep here instead of calling a cab or driving by myself."

"Considering that you are in a garage building and I can see the paid ticket there isn't much of an issue." The older officer said looking at Benji and the car. "So what made you drink that much by yourself?"

"You don't want to know officer and I don't want to talk about it." Benji replied on his best sorrowful tone. "Son sometimes talking eases your troubled spirit." The older man said. "I had the worse day of my entire life." Benji said holding his forehead. "My fiancée who are engaged with me for four year dumped me for a guy that weights three times more than me and is half tall, then my homosexual neighbors in the middle of a gay orgy managed to break the walls dividing our apartments, so I had to leave because of the sight, to make things worse, I lost my job because my company bankrupted and they won't even pay me."

"Well that is quite a lot happening at the same day." The older officer commented sympathetically. "At least you were sober enough to not drink and drive risking yours and someone else's lives. Son looking at the bright side with so much bad things happening at the same time you are bound to have a proportional wave of good fortune coming to you. As starters I will leave this only with an advertence, so sleep some more and then go hone."

Benji nodded and sees the two policemen walking away. 'It was a good thing putting on the suit before sleeping.' Benji thought casually, the sake bottles also helped. "And the academy award goes to…" A familiar feminine voice said in a teasingly tone. "To Benji Himura on his performance of pitiful man sleeping drunk on his car."

"What you are doing out of your cave so soon in the morning Shiaki?" Benji asked teasingly. "When I was watching the news I saw that some horrible criminal organization backing up a rogue security guard who was supposed to be dead in killing several important figures." Shiaki answered seriously. "Why you are doing this?"

Benji sighed tiredly. "I decided to end things." Benji answered. "I got enough information to eradicate the organization. Killing all the leaders, all the politicians backing it up, cutting any possibility to be restored, and with additional information that I got earlier I got the location of the base, now I can go and kill Nodoka."

"And what you do after that?" Shiaki asked plainly. "Go to Tokyo Disneyland." Benji answered with a grin. "Seriously?" Shiaki asked surprised. "No." Benji answered flatly. "But then I never visited the place so it might be a good idea. My original idea was getting to my hideout sleep a day or two and then having sex with my two subordinates until I feel tired or satisfied, whatever happens first."

"I kind of like your original idea." Shiaki commented. "You aren't invited." Benji said in a flat tone. "So why you are here?" Shiaki sighed. "As I said to know why you are doing this." "So you want to come and kill everyone that you can in Nodoka's base?" Benji asked. "Sure." Shiaki answered. "Just let me get my stuff, when we kill them?"

"After noon." Benji replied. "I have an appointment with a company president in…" Benji looks at his watch. "Two hours, I have some 'proposals' that he has to go through."

"Pick me up before going or I will have your hide in front of my fireplace." Shiaki said walking away. Benji sighs and gets rid of the sake bottles, he had to clean up the car and get ready to the next hit before killing Nodoka.

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"So Ranko should we go to school today?" Motoko asked to the orange haired girl, but as Ranko she didn't felt like going to school. "I guess that we should." Ranko answered. "We should act as if we don't know anything about the incidents." "Motoko-senpai, Ranko-san!" Shinobu called from the hall. "Anything wrong Shinobu?" Ranko asked, it wasn't often that Shinobu visited 'her' hall of the pension. "Your school called." Shinobu answered. "Because the incidents during the night the principal and the teachers decided that today wouldn't have class as precaution over the student's safety as well to not make the police's work harder."

"I guess that it settles or previous decision." Motoko commented with a bitter smirk. "Thank you Shinobu-chan." Motoko said to the shorter girl. "What about your school?" "I have classes since my school is closer." Shinobu answered. "I shouldn't say this but I am a bit jealous."

After Shinobu leaves Ranko turns to Motoko. "I guess that now we don't have anything to keep us distracted from that." Ranko commented. "What we should do?" Motoko knew that without something to keep them busy and distracted the day would be filled with tension and worry. "You have a video-game right? What about we play something until we come up with something better?" Motoko said after seeing the named item near Ranko's TV.

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Benji finishes buckling the last of the holsters that he would be wearing, a total of ten holsters with magazine loops; under them one bullet proof vest, a black BDU and his skin tight shozoko 'of the future'; over it all a long black coat. He takes from the table the M60 with an enlarged box magazine.

Benji puts the sling across his chest and rests the large machinegun on his shoulder and takes a black helmet from a chair, with a sigh he walks away from the room. 'This is it, it is time to go out there and die.' Benji thought closing the door behind him, he puts on the helmet, it closes with a soft click, the collar of the shozoko and the neck guard of the custom helmet doesn't let one inch of skin exposed, adding to his leather gloves and combat boots not even a inch from Benji's skin is exposed.

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"Hey I was watching that!" Kitsune complained while Naru changes the TV channel. "I need to check on something." Naru replied flipping the channels. "Today they should announce the days of an exposition that I want to visit." "It would be nice to ask first." Kitsune muttered. "Yeah." Ranko commented. "Being polite doesn't hurt."

Naru shrugged and remains in silence. "Hey stop!" Motoko exclaimed; surprised Naru does. "Is that a movie?" "Well it should be." Kitsune commented. "Otherwise why a man clad in black would be carrying a machinegun in Shibuya. Man that is some big gun." "That isn't a movie!" Naru exclaimed. "That is a live feed from Shibuya!" "My god he just opened fire!" Kitsune screamed.

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Far from there Benji fires at the black Mercedes of his target, a mixture of armor piercing, incendiary, explosive, and mercury filled bullets hit the car while Benji walks towards it. The massive continues recoil reverberates on his body, he can feel the strain on his ribs, but he keeps firing.

The fuel in the tank explodes wrapping the car in a ball of flames, Benji continues firing until he empties the large box magazine, then he removes it and feeds it a new one, adjusting the new belt was a bit times consuming but Benji does it quite fast for an amateur.

Then he fires some more on it just to be sure of the kill, some more meaning half belt. Benji runs from there knowing that the police are arriving and the news is watching everything, it was time for the grand finale of the entry course. Benji enters on the car now unmarked again and speeds away.

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Ranko and Motoko stared in shock at the pursuit, they knew that was Benji, who else could be, it doesn't matter what the news said earlier they knew better, but they also didn't want to believe that he was doing all that, that he killed a unknown number of men in front of the cameras, in front of the entire country.

Everyone in the room screams in horror as the car rams inside a building and then explodes; destroying every window in a hundred meters radius from there, there wasn't a small time between the entrance and the explosion, no precious seconds that the driver could have jumped away from the car.

Spiritless Ranko watches the police surrounding the area while the reporters keep trying to get an image of the burning car. Motoko felt as bad as Ranko, she can't believe that Benji just committed suicide like that, it wasn't an accident; he took the car straight to the building.

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"So how good was that?" Benji asked entering in a car that Fuuka is driving. "I would give a nine out of ten." Fuuka answered as Benji sits on the backseat. "The explosion could be flashier." "But added to everything that was send to the media it would cover up nicely." Eri commented. "Especially with the corpse that you left there for the police."

"As long they buy the whole revenge for the brother story it is okay." Benji said lying on the backseat. "To the base I want to rest for a couple of hours before we raid their base." "Yes sir." Fuuka replied. "How is the side?" Eri asked worried, turning around to check on him. "Killing me." Benji answered.

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"Once again remember." Benji said to Shiaki, Eri and Fuuka. "No spells, special techniques, transformations and unusual kills, we have to keep a cover of a 'regular' assault force." "And how a regular assault force would attack a base with only four members?" Shiaki asked flatly.

"Actually five." Benji replied. "We will be taking a computer expert with us." "Whatever." Shiaki said. "Still not enough." "It is plenty considering the combined power in the group." Benji commented. "Anyway, Shiaki you will stay with the computer expert, she isn't a fighter so you will make up for that and protect her while she wipes out their database."

Shiaki nodded understanding, but what she really doesn't like is that she has to wear a full suit, including a necktie. "Eri, you and Fuuka will move accordingly to the need." Benji said turning to his two subordinates. "Move in a pair or alone is up to you two, I will be by myself, don't forget to shoot the cameras, we know the location of them all and we are all with glasses that detect them."

The trio nodded. "Keep radio contact but keep the messages short, don't use your real names." Benji added. "If you meet a situation that you don't think that can take care by yourself call for help, other than that kill everyone inside." "What about the children that was supposed to be there?" Eri asked.

"Depend of their state." Benji answered. "I will leave to your best judgment; you will know what to do when the time comes. The same goes to the rest of you." "And adult prisoners just in case of having any?" Fuuka asked. "Get a name and check with the tech." Benji answered. "Depending of why the prisoner is there release or kill him. But do not let anyone see your faces, we might be use glasses and different hair colors now but is still risky."

"So mostly kill everything that moves that isn't in our side." Shiaki commented. "I can do that." "Don't get cocky." Benji replied. "Nodoka isn't dumb, she might be crippled but I believe that she will have security and some counter measures ready, she might not be expecting an attack this soon but we are speaking about the only base of a secret military organization. Check your gear once again, carry three times more ammo that you would normally and shoot to kill."

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Mizuki cried as Fuuka and Benji hold her by the elbows rather forcefully as they make her walk on a fancy entry hall, she didn't like of her role in the plan, she wasn't even allowed to put on clothes! Benji forced her to put on an oversized shirt and a pair of slippers, other than that she only kept her underwear; she can't even start in how ashamed she is as two tall men in black suits look at the group.

"What is this?" One of the suit clad guards asked. "We apprehended this hacker." Benji said with his voice different than the usual. "She is connected to the organization that is attacking our offices." "Quite young." The second guard commented. "And where you found her? She is too underdressed."

"We bust on her house while she was sleeping." Fuuka said with her voice also altered. "It was hard enough to track her to let her slip from our fingers." "Very well then, pass by the metal detector and then check in on the desk as procedure." The second security said to them.

Benji and Fuuka walk with Mizuki by the detector that activates the alarm. "Any of you two are carrying any metal?" The first officer asked. "Plenty." Benji said tearing Mizuki's shirt and grabbing an Uzi from one of the many holsters strapped on the girl. Fuuka follows the gesture and they fire on all the guards and cameras.

"That was easy." Benji commented. "Now get this stuff out of me!" Mizuki complained. "It is heavy!" "I told you to work out more." Benji replied teasingly. "I even gave you those nice sport clothes." Under the holsters, weapons and magazines Mizuki is wearing a black, dark green and blue running shorts and shirt.

Shiaki and Eri enter on the hall and close the heavy metal doors behind the shatterproof glass doors. "There." Fuuka said removing nearly everything from Mizuki, leaving the girl only with a pistol on her. "I will start out on the desk." Mizuki said walking to the desk; Benji had removed the corpse so at least that wouldn't bother her.

"Okay I got confirmation of the layout." Mizuki said after a couple minutes. "And we have company coming up, elevator two, three and four." "Check the upper floors." Benji said moving to one of the elevators. "And secure number one, five and six for us." "Done that." Mizuki replied. "Number one was above the ground so it is empty; the others are on their way."

"Okay then. Cut the cables of two to four." Benji said to Fuuka and Shiaki. The two nod and they force open the doors. Benji throws a pair of grenades on the shaft, Shiaki and Fuuka follows the lead and do the same, the bombs destroy the pulleys and the break system of the elevators, they can hear the screams from the guards inside as they have a one last trip down.

"I isolated the building from the outside." Mizuki said to them. "Internet access, telephone, satellite, I even shut down cable and Pay-per-View, locked all the exits and threw a wrench on the mainframe, but their techs should remove it all in ten minutes, I can't do more from here." "Then we get you to the computer room." Benji said. "Let's get going."

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"The terrorist was identified as Kaito Akimoto, a former JSSDF member that was working in the private security sector, assumed to be dead in an accident along with his brother." The reporter says in front of the police district. "In a second declaration of intent posted half hour prior to the attack that led to his death he explains that he killed everyone with the help of mercenaries that already left the country with the single intent of avenging his brother who was denied the rights that was promised to him. Details of the contract and information about reasons of killing the victims were added to this second declaration."

Motoko looks seriously while Ranko is confused, Motoko could understand what happened, Benji had killed the brothers in an earlier date and while left one to be found and the other to be considered dead, he had already planned using Kaito's corpse to close the assassination case, in that way the police wouldn't search more for the perpetrator of the crimes and the organization would look at a different direction.

'Perfect misleading.' Motoko thought. 'That plan, the declarations of intent, everything had to be planned with minor details, but he had to have some kind of help, two of those assassinations contrasted greatly with the others, it shows that someone else killed them. What is he thinking? What he will do?'

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Benji calmly reloads his Uzi, near by a wall is destroyed by several bullets. "Assault one, two and three." Mizuki's voice said on a small ear piece on Benji's right ear. "I got total control of the mainframe, you are clear to advance without further hindrance from the defense system."

"Roger that." Benji replied while throwing a grenade on the corner. "Proceed for the next step of the mission." Benji acknowledge reply while advancing and killing the still alive guards on that hall. He was far deeper than Mizuki, Shiaki, Eri and Fuuka, the four of them are on the already cleared first underground level ten meters bellow the surface.

Benji is on the second underground level fifteen meters bellow the street level, moving to reach the third underground level that is even deeper, there is the hospital and laboratory, and the location of Nabiki, Nodoka and Kasumi.

"This is assault three to all units." Fuuka's voice came from the radio while Benji is killing his way to the next elevator. "I have secured the armory." "Proceed with the second phase." Benji said. "Get everything that you can, set down the charges and move to the next area."

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Benji smiled content, after three long hours and using nearly all ammunition that he was carrying, which wasn't little since he used his hidden weapon space to store magazines and weapons, Benji finally reached the hospital.

Benji fires at doctors, nurses and any one else in the halls as he walks on it, there wasn't need for mercy or care, those people are the enemy since the hospital wing only operated and takes care of members of the organization, 'samples' as the victims used in the experiments are called are treated in the laboratory wing, therefore Benji didn't had to worry about killing innocents, there wasn't one there, lastly the security so down on the base wasn't all that good either, Benji was cutting through it as hot knife on butter.

'This is disturbing.' Benji thought. 'It is far too easy, sure everything that I did in the past months weakened the defense potential greatly since they are busy defending the companies from the thieves, dividing the security personnel among them, but still this is disturbingly easy, did everything that I did in the past made me so insensitive and strong to the point that I am in a different level from regular people as Ranko is from me?'

Benji feels the scent of the overheated metal of the machine pistols and throws them towards the enemy, he smiled seeing them exploding on them, but he was running out of guns and he was overusing his guns on that base. Benji pulls a pair of GLOCK 18s with extended 33 rounds magazines from his jacket.

"Please…" A nurse begged hugging another nurse, both terrified and crying. "Please don't…" Benji closes his eyes and levels his right hand pistol towards hand. "NO PLEAAA…..!" Benji fires in full auto cutting the despaired scream. Benji opens his eyes and looks around the room.

He fires in a closet and hears screams from it, keeping the trigger pulled Benji empties the magazine, reloading Benji sees blood pooling under the gap of the door. Leaving the break room Benji continues his bloody path towards his goal.

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Benji finally arrives in Nodoka's room, it was surely hers, and the scent was unmistakable. "Ichiro sends his regards." Benji said leveling the pistols at the bed and firing at body on the bed and in the machines around it, emptying the magazines on the process. Benji walks to the bed and sees the bloody mass that once was Nodoka Saotome, he confirms that is her.

He pulls a satchel from his jacket and places it over the bed; then he flips a switch inside it and leaves the room. Benji repeats the process with Kasumi and Nabiki, each one getting two full magazines each, over each body Benji place a similar satchel that he placed over Nodoka's.

Getting some distance between himself and the room Benji press a switch that he takes from his pocket, three large explosions rock at the same time the entire floor. "Now they can't survive that." Benji whispered. "Sixty six rounds on each, five kilos of plastique, ten kilos of buckshot and ten kilos of termite, that has to kill those bitches." Benji reloads the machine pistols. "Now is time to wrap up in the lab." Benji murmured.

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Benji stared horrified, he did unspeakable things, killed far many than he cared to count but seeing what is ahead of him he felt that compared to his most recent victims his own crimes aren't even considerable. "What did they do?" Benji whispered in horror, in front of him individual glass tanks filled with children. Alive and in pieces if not both at the same time, used to all kind of experiments.

Benji pulls a pair of desert eagles from his jacket, knowing that even the overpressure 9mm bullets that he was using wouldn't pierce the glass and be able to end the suffering of those children. Benji closes his eyes and whisper a silent prayer to those who he is about to kill.

Benji snap one shot on each tank, aiming straight to the heads of those who are still alive to give them a quick and painless death. Benji ignores the shattering tanks and the falling torrent of whatever liquid was filling the tanks. Thirty tanks later Benji pauses once again to reload the pistols.

It was a hellish sight, the concrete floor more suited to a slaughter house was covered with the purplish liquid and shattered glass from the tanks, in the tanks the dead mutilated children handing by cables as some bizarre dolls, rocking lightly after the movement of the long gone rushing liquid, dripping blood and the purplish liquid.

Benji spins on his heels when noticing the most minimal sound coming from the hall. "At last someone gave them some peace." A feminine voice said from the hall. "But you aren't done yet." "And who are you?" Benji asked keeping one pistol aimed at the newcomer's head. "AX137." The girl not older than Kitsune said to Benji. "Single working prototype of the project CB-19, created with the purpose of terminating cursed being."

"Curse Breaker." Benji murmured. "If you are operational then why weren't you deployed to prevent my advance on this base?" Benji asked firmly. "I am restrained by a sub-dermal explosive choker. I wasn't given clearance to operate." AX137 answered. "I can't leave the laboratorial area; if I do the choker will detonate severing my head."

Benji carefully exams the girl, at first sight she wasn't any different than any girl that he met, she was wearing a catsuit made of some black fabric, not so different than Shiaki's shozoko, the only difference is that she is wearing an additional assault vest with a empty knife sheath upside down on the right shoulder and a also empty pistol holster under her left arm.

Her hair is cut short in a Peter Pan like style and is black, she has Japanese features and other than her slight above average height she hardly would stand out in the street for anything other than being pretty. "And now that brings me to the question." Benji said still with his guard up. "What to do with you?"

"I can't leave the complex." AX137 replied. "I have no interest in fighting, however I was programmed to eliminate cursed beings, and you are cursed." "Then that brings us to a fighting scene." Benji commented. "Why you aren't armed? I can see that you should be carrying weapons."

"After any combat test or training my additional weaponry is removed." AX137 answered. "I wasn't equipped for combat." "Well I am a bit curious over why you are standing there so calmly." Benji commented. "You are freeing my predecessors of the pain of failure and the fate of being used as spare parts." AX137 answered. "While made and programmed for combat I do not enjoy conflict."

Benji could understand that. "So how many scientists and personnel in the lab that I haven't killed yet?" Benji asked to her, she was being serviceable so why not ask her. "Approximately twenty scientists, sixty nine nurses, seventeen assistants, and fifty technicians." AX137 answered cordially. "They are currently hiding inside the empty breeding room 8; they aren't equipped with any kind of armament."

Benji nodded understanding. "You are awfully serviceable." Benji commented. "You want something back right?" "Exactly." AX137 answered. "I have three requests to make." "It will depend of the nature of the request but depending of what it is I will do it." Benji replied. "So name it."

"First." AX137 said. "In the containment room 1 are being kept my future versions, they haven't been programmed and trained since they are still too young, if is possible give them a human life." Benji remained in silence for a moment. "I will try." Benji said seriously. "However it will depend of their appearance and other factors."

"I am aware of those limitations." AX137 replied. "They are fully human in appearance and composition, the CB-19 creates artificial enhanced humanoid forms, the AX line is based in fully human units with enhanced capabilities." "Well if they are human it can work." Benji commented. "Still on the first request." AX137 said. "In the containment room 4 is being kept two prototypes of a different project named SABER, they are the remaining two units of the project and are deemed failures since they lacked the abilities of the other prototypes, they are being kept operational since unlike the others they didn't developed a failure that caused the others to break, please also take them, as the others they are fully human looking.

Benji nodded and remained in silence. "The second request is to give to the living prototypes a human name and not a designation number." AX137 said. "They believe to be flaws in the system that we have gained human feelings. They would be attempting to remove the feelings from us further ahead in the project."

"I that I can do." Benji said, naming them wouldn't be all that hard. "What is the last request?" "Destroying me." AX137 answered. "I am unfit to live a human life, I have several triggers programmed in my mind and body, allowing me to live will eventually expose me to the signal that activate my triggers and that would lead to death of those surrounding me."

"You are sure about this last one?" Benji asked seriously. "Yes." AX137 answered. "I apologize but I am most likely to offer resistance in being destroyed." "It is all right Aline." Benji said. "Everyone fights to prevent death." "Aline?" AX137 asked confused. "You are still a living prototype." Benji answered with a smile. "So you also get a human name."

"Thank you." She replied with tears and a smile. "Now please proceed with my elimination." Benji nodded and throws the pistol at his left hand at Aline; by instinct she slaps the pistol away, with her distracted Benji fires at her seven times. All the bullets hit her slim body, piercing her torso and back, she never saw it coming.

Benji ejects the empty magazine and feed the desert eagle with a fresh one as Aline falls with her legs limp under her. "Sorry but you weren't ready yet." Benji said with a bitter smile as he walks towards her. "It is okay." She replied coughing and choking on her own blood.

Benji kneels next to her and gently holds her. "It will end soon." Benji said making her as comfortable as possible on the situation. "You aren't alone and it will end soon." "Thank you." She murmured with a smile, with a sudden move Benji breaks her neck ending her pain.

Benji closes his eyes for a moment and pulls a pocket knife from his jacket's pocket. "Just to make sure okay?" Benji said in a gentle tone while he makes two deep cuts on her neck over the arteries, then he rests the limp body on the floor. "I hope that you get a happier next life." Benji stands up and takes the faller desert eagle. "Now I have some scientists to meet."

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"Benji is really taking his time." Ranko muttered annoyed while tapping a spoon on a bowl of ice cream that she is having. "He is an adult man." Haruka commented. "It isn't uncommon for males of his age to expend nights out with lady friends." "He is just twenty three years old." Naru pointed out. "Just two years older than Keitaro."

"Actually it is twenty five." Ranko corrected. "He sometimes gets confused on his age. When you live with out telling to anyone since they already know it you tend to forget." "Well I have seen cases of women lying on their own ages." Haruka commented. "I guess that forgetting isn't all that odd either. Twenty five, eh? I wouldn't give him twenty."

"Why when Benji-san is involved with women no one say anything bad, and when it is me under a suspicion of anything I get treated like a pervert?" Keitaro asked. "Given your background is a natural assumption." Naru said acidly. "I am not the one who disappears for days to stay with some bimbo!" Keitaro exclaimed angrily.

"Benji never did anything that we could consider perversion." Motoko pointed out. "He own hentai." Kitsune said casually. "So what?" Ranko replied. "It would be odd if he had gay porn, not regular hentai. Healthy interest in women is okay." "And is a proven fact that masturbation relieves stress." Haruka added. "And Kitsune I know that you have some porn in your room too." Kitsune blushed fiercely; she couldn't understand how Haruka knew about her secret stash.

"Shouldn't you people be out of here by now?" Benji asked entering on the dinning room. "Where have you been?!" Ranko asked seriously. "Busy." Benji answered. "Now I am tired and I am going to sleep until I feel tired of sleeping." "You smell like perfume." Naru commented. "And what that concerns you?" Benji asked flatly. "What I do is my business alone, not yours."

Benji moves to the kitchen and gets a bottle of lime flavored water and then leaves the dinning area. "It is just me or he is in a worse mood than in the last time?" Kitsune asked to the others. "He is worse than before." Keitaro said. "And it is barely nine in the morning."

"Anyway leaving his problems alone." Haruka said clapping her hands. "He is right, we should be going by now." "It is really okay leave Benji-san alone?" Shinobu asked worried. "He is old enough to be left to his own devices." Haruka answered. "Let's get going."

End of the chapter ten:

Author explanation corner:

Not much to add here now since things was quite self explaining on the chapter, anyway here some more details:

CB-19: A project developed to hunt and destroy cursed beings, being whatever curse it is.

AX137 A.K.A. Aline: Just a random group of letters and numbers that I threw together to design the 'unit', Aline, just a name that I thought for her. Originally the interaction was going to be a massive fight between Benji and Aline, but in the end I decided to change to something less violent (I grew tired of writing it for the moment).

Aline or AX137 was the first successful prototype of the CB-19 project, far stronger and faster than a human she would be a hard match even for skilled and strong martial artists, however because her 'artificial' origin she was quite naïve, lacking life experiences and wasn't trained in 'dirty' fighting techniques, which implied in her quick demise when facing Benji's basic distraction technique.

She developed a bond with the other 'subjects' since she was the first successful one and had other units made 'after' her (older sister complex).

Killing Nodoka, Nabiki and Kasumi: I know, I know it wasn't as detailed or cruel as promised in the earlier chapters, some must be thinking that sixty six overpressure 9mm Parabellum rounds and then twenty five kilos of incendiary and anti-personnel bomb is pure overkill, but the three survived to a couple of grenades and Nabiki survived the second attempt on her, so Benji is making sure that they will die, stay dead and that no one can use their corpses to bring them back.

The Ichiro line was just another false lead just in case that someone somehow hears Benji, and since Ichiro isn't an uncommon name the organization is bound to have an enemy named Ichiro.

More notes under the extras if seen needed

………**Extras………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………**

"So what we do with the database?" Mizuki asked to Benji through the radio, she had finally finished with the preparations to delete and destroy the entire system; it took her as long it took Benji to kill Nodoka, Nabiki and Kasumi.

"Oi assault four." Benji said to Shiaki. "You think that medical advancements made by the suffering from innocents should be used?" "Well Uno it is a hard question." Shiaki replied through the radio. "Look back and think about the advancements that the medicine had after the wars, how the knowledge increased afterwards, even the horrors made by the Nazi doctors resulted in knowledge and techniques that now days help people who are suffering."

"So you think that is right to build science over the bodies of innocent?" Benji asked looking at a tank where an unconscious six years old girl is floating on. "Over their suffering and deaths?"

"No, I don't think that is right." Shiaki answered. "However if we destroy the knowledge that was acquired by their suffering, that they paid with their lives for, it wouldn't make their death even more meaningless? Isn't using the knowledge that they died in the course of getting a way of honoring their deaths by preventing the death of others? Treating incurable illnesses?"

"It is really worth the price?" Benji asked touching on the warm glass of the tank. "They perfected human cloning Four, genetic manipulation, artificial aging of clones." "Imagine the lives that could be saved by those techniques." Shiaki said seriously. "People who die in the line for transplants could receive healthy cloned organs to replaced their damaged ones, people who lost limbs could receive a fully functional cloned limb to replace the lost one, all the people who suffer from genetic illnesses could be treated with genetic manipulation and be healed. The potential is limitless."

"I am quite sure that you don't know this." Benji said seriously. "But if to clone an organ you needed to clone the whole person, it wouldn't have the memories, it would be a different individual, then that clone is killed or harvested for organs for the original, then the clone is discarded, alive or dead, it doesn't matter it is just used 'goods'."

"I know where you are getting at." Shiaki replied. "I saw that episode of Sliders too. Sure it is a possible scenario, but at this time we can create specific tissue in a Petri dish, organs can be created in artificial containers. And before you start on the mutation issue I think that even if we seal this knowledge it is too precious to be destroyed."

"Assault five." Benji said seriously. "Hai!" Mizuki exclaimed. "You have enough storage space?" Benji asked. "Yes, just barely." Mizuki answered. "All those external drives that we brought that originally I thought that was pointless now are pretty meaningful."

"Very well then." Benji said. "Copy everything; later we will destroy from our database any information on chemical and biological weapons." "Okay." Mizuki replied. "It should take around six hours to download everything." "Enough time to deal with everything." Benji commented. "Assault two and three."

"Hai?" Fuuka and Eri answered when called. "Are the floors cleared?" Benji asked. "Yes sir." The duo answered. "We checked two times, no survivors." "Then start setting the charges all over the place, I want this place ready to blow before Five is done with the download." Benji commanded. "And do not forget the EMP on the mainframe." "Yes sir!" The duo replied as one.

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Benji leads a small group of children out of the laboratory, a total of ten including the still unconscious girl on his arms. 'Aline should have told me that two of the project SABER were cat girls.' Benji thought casually, behind him two girls with cat ears and tails follow him holding on each other, behind those two there was seven girls, three of them looked like a younger version of Aline, the other four have different colored hairs, one have silver hair and dark tanned skin, other had green colored hair, a third have dark blue hair and the last one have purple hair.

'I can only guess that they only made girls so they could be used as breeding machines.' Benji thought recalling the lack of boys in the group. 'But I might be wrong and the boys died. In the elevator the group remained in silence, the CB-19 girls kept close of the other while the SABER girls did the same, at least they are all wearing a simple hospital gown, it wasn't much but was better than nothing.

After half an hour Benji explained to the others about the girls, no one protested but they wondered about the fate of the orphans that were taken to the facility, none of the girls that Benji brought matched the picture of any of them. "We are halfway done with the download." Mizuki informed.

"And we are done with the charges." Fuuka added. "Good." Benji replied. "Two you check them for tracking devices and any kind of destruction devices, I didn't found any down there but there are differences between a rushed check and a through one." Eri nodded agreeing.

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"They are all sleeping now." Eri said while entering on Shiaki's living room. "The escape, the exams and lastly the excitement of seeing outside was too much for them." "So what you plan to do about them?" Shiaki asked to Benji. "I haven't thought about that." Benji answered. "What we learned about them?"

"Well the two SABER girls are part of a project based on lycanthropy." Mizuki explained. "Instead of being shape-shifters the two girls are hybrids, unintended twins with an unexpected mutation that kept them alive when all the others made on the same batch died, they were kept to be studded. The scientists wanted to find the details of the mutations and apply the life preserving one in the others while removing the cat girl one. They show enhanced senses; strength, speed, agility, flexibility and balance, there are some notes over seeing some colors that still aren't determined."

"They are color blind?" Benji asked. "No." Mizuki answered. "It says something like this, what for us is purple for them might be something else; or they don't register it, it simple goes to a different color that their eyes can process, it is the price of enhanced night vision." "Later we should check if they need to take rabies shots or any other animal vaccines." Benji commented. "What?!" He exclaimed as everyone stares at him. "It is a sensible worry considering their physiology. You know that as well as I do Eri."

"Well you are right master." Eri said. "I did take rabies shots." "You did?" Fuuka asked confused. "I am a werewolf Fuuka, and that means that some illnesses that affects wolfs affect me as well." Eri explained. "So you took them too?" Shiaki asked to Benji. "Yes." Benji answered. "You don't stay as long as I did as wolf without worrying about that, the first thing that I did when I first got cursed was getting the whole set of vaccines for dogs, trust me on this you don't want to be the source of a mutated canine virus that will become the scourge of the humankind."

"Point taken." Shiaki replied. "So they get all shots later. What else on the list?" "The CB-19 girls are simpler." Mizuki said. "They are essentially human, they have enhancements on their DNA, they are stronger, faster, agile, gracious, smarter and dexterous than normal humans, comparing to girls of their 'age' they are six times stronger."

"So crudely speaking 'factory made' they are six times stronger than the average." Shiaki commented. "Then with the kind of training that Ranma had they would be at the very least six times stronger than he is." "Exactly." Mizuki answered. "In a way you can say that they are the very ideal of perfect human, they will grow into beautiful women, stronger than many heavy machines, faster than sports cars, tougher than tanks, and with the proper training those girls will be the most perfect assassins that one could imagine."

"And the best part is that they reproduce." Benji said seriously. "Passing to a next generation all that potential, making an army of them would be easy, keeping five females for solely reproduction sake, one male of the same kind, each female can give birth by year at least to one child, nine months of pregnancy, three to recover and then start the cycle all over again."

"Actually there is a flaw in your line of thought." Mizuki pointed out seriously. "From the data, the period of pregnancy is five months, so in one year it would be at least two babies, that if we don't consider the possibility of twins or triplets. And also not considering the possibility of cloning and/or harvesting eggs from them and insemination a third party or creating the embryo then fetus on a tank, like those in the lab. In any scenario mass production is quite easy."

"This is terrifying." Eri said sitting down. "It doesn't matter if those girls were created in a test tube and grown in tanks filled with synthetic amniotic fluid, they are still humans, not animals; no they were treated worse than animals." "They were samples or objects." Benji said seriously. "I also don't like it, but the truth is that, for them they were nothing more than units, no more important than the troops of a real-time strategy game, and most likely as inexpensive after completed."

"That was the purpose of their creation." Mizuki added. "To be like those units, but thanks to us they will have a chance of having a normal life." "I am worried about their maturation and the pregnancy cycle." Benji said seriously. "The CB-19 girls are hardly one year old; the SABER girls are six months old, and the…what is the name of the project again?"

"Tecnomancer." Mizuki answered. "Supposedly it should create an army of people able to make any computer system work using their minds while touching it, control of machines with computer systems, hacking and cracking, a new type of hacker with the brain as computer, able to operate and crack with the speed of their minds."

"That is right, she is hardly eighteen months old." Benji said seriously. "And they all look like kids at ten or seven years old, if that kind of increased maturation continues before I turn twenty seven those girls will look old enough to be my great-grandmothers."

"I am still looking on the data but the process was induced with the aid of drugs." Mizuki replied. "If it is indeed truth then without those drugs they should age as normal girls." "What about the shortened pregnancy?" Fuuka asked seriously. "There isn't enough information on that." Mizuki answered. "AX137 or Aline as Benji named her was the only subject to mature to child bearing age."

"And?" Benji asked, that was important an important subject, he haven't found any infants there. "Supposedly she gave birth to three female subjects that were transferred to a different project, a fourth died when it was administrated a excessive dosage of the aging enhancer drug, it died in the twenty hours, it reached an estimated age of two hundred and seventy four years before death, then decomposed to nothing in less than five minutes." Mizuki answered.

"What about the fate of the first three babies?" Benji asked seriously. "There isn't much information about that here." Mizuki answered. "But it is marked as terminated, so I guess that they were killed when the project ended, disposed if you prefer." Benji let out a long and tired sigh.

"Mizuki discover if the girls were taking any more drugs." Benji said seriously. "I want to know if they will have withdraw symptoms, if they will, when it will happen and what it is, and how long it will last, if that happens we should move them to the base." "This mansion can take them." Shiaki said. "It is isolated and sound proofed."

"It isn't padded." Benji pointed out. "And there are plenty of things to them to get hurt with or hurting someone else or themselves." "I have agree with Benji on this." Mizuki said. "Withdraw symptoms aren't pretty, and we are speaking about genetically enhanced girls her, the last thing that we need is them escaping or the police finding them."

"And what you will do with them in the long term picture?" Shiaki asked seriously to Benji. "I am thinking about that." Benji answered. "We can't just create identities to them and leave them by themselves, but I don't think that we can take care of them all." "And why not?" Eri asked. "Now that you killed your enemies you are supposed to have much less worries right?"

"I still have plenty of them." Benji answered. "And in the case that we decide to take care of them all 'we' would be mostly you and Fuuka." "I don't see much or a problem there." Eri commented. Fuuka sighed at the idea of babysitting ten genetically enhanced kids.

"And Eri you also have college to worry about." Benji replied. "When I told you that I was thinking in getting you back to college you was happy about the idea." "Well this is a more troublesome subject than I first imagined." Eri said with an embarrassed smile. "Anyway for at least two months we will be watching closely over them, we need to learn what they know, if they learned things that normal kids would, if didn't then teach them before getting them to school." Benji said seriously. "Shiaki for now I will leave them here since I am too beat to leave too, later we will move to our base. After that I think more about it."

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"The new clothes are here." Shiaki said to Benji who is showering. "Thanks." Benji replied, Shiaki takes the basket with the used clothes and leaves. "Is all that smoke?" Fuuka asked when entering in the kitchen where Shiaki is standing. "Incense." Shiaki answered holding Benji's jacket against the light.

"I never thought that I was going to see this outside Terminator 2." Shiaki commented seeing several bullet holes on the jacket, the light passing by them and illuminating the thick incense smoke. "Well it is the wonders of Kevlar." Fuuka commented picking Benji's shirt. "It is just me or he took a shotgun blast in the left kidney area?"

"The jacket says that he did." Shiaki answered examining the named area. "Several shots in the back, more in the front, even the pants have holes." "Well the armor is history now." Fuuka commented picking up the armored vest. "That much abuse took everything from it, this thing is at least one kilo heavier. No wonder it was easy to move after he passed, he cleared most of the enemies."

"I kind of feel bad in having to burn this." Shiaki commented. "But as he said we need to get rid from incriminating evidence." Shiaki throws the jacket on the basket. "You and Eri got rid of your suits?" "Already bagged them." Fuuka answered. "We will throw in the incinerator later. Same with the guns and the computer that Mizuki used as soon she finishes sending the data to a different machine."

"Criminal activities now days aren't as profitable as in the past." Shiaki commented. "Now you use a car once and you have to get rid of it, same with clothes. In the old days you could use the same car over and over with out problems." Fuuka knew that was true but doesn't say anything.

The duo remained in a slight uncomfortable silence for a while. "So now what you will do?" Shiaki asked to Fuuka. "I don't know." Fuuka answered, true while she never had that much freedom before, she also knew that even if she made plans in the end she would have to either adapt or give up her plans for the sake of the pack as Eri often called the group. "Perhaps I will be in charge of the kids, or I will have to learn a different school of sorcery, I never heard any kind of long term plans."

"That because we don't have any kind of long term plans." Eri said entering on the kitchen. "The most long term plan that we have is getting me back to college and that is it. Until now we haven't time or will to sit down and think about the future." "And as we you mean Benji, right?" Shiaki asked leaning against the kitchen's counter.

"Yes." Eri answered with a nod. "He is the alpha, the leader, my master, he commands and I obey, that simple." "And since I am even lower in the food chain so do it." Fuuka added. "How low?" Shiaki asked. "I am an omega." Eri answered. "And Fuuka's mistress, since Benji is my master he is also Fuuka's master."

"That is quite low." Shiaki commented, she knows the role of the omega in a wolf's pack. "However if you take a careful look she isn't as low as the name says." Eri said with a smile. "There is only Benji, Fuuka and me on the pack, so she is the third in the pack."

"And Mizuki doesn't count?" Shiaki asked. "We just met her today." Fuuka answered. "As far as we know she is only outside help." Eri nodded confirming. "And since I am not in the pack either." Shiaki commented. "Well you two aren't badly placed; Benji is different from most alphas."

Eri nodded agreeing, she know that already, after all he treats her as a valuable companion and not as the fool of the pack, the same with Fuuka, Benji teased, provoked and just when needed threatened them but he also respected them, and the punishments were mostly light, fitting with the infraction, Eri was harsher when comparing to Benji, Fuuka knew that personally.

"I just wonder what we will do about our assets as well the new stolen goods." Fuuka mused on loud. "We virtually stole everything from the armory, we have enough weapons and ammunition to start a war and fight on it for months. Not counting one ton of plastic explosive and half ton of liquid high explosive, two hundred kilos of spray-can explosive foam, the list here is quite long. "

"Well I don't know but I am sure that Benji will decide on something." Shiaki commented. "But I am interested in those cans of explosive foam, I can think in some many uses for them."

"How you are feeling now?" Eri asked to Benji as he enters on the kitchen. "As if I was thrown inside a rock grinder." Benji answered with the shirt throw over his left shoulder. "So better than before."

"You look like was throw inside some crushing heavy machine." Shiaki commented seeing Benji's torso covered with bruises, it was easier to count the areas that aren't bruised; it was easy to see the small areas that aren't purple. "And I thinking that you had a smooth time."

"As smooth as a rock trail." Benji said in a flat tone. "I just want to drink something cold and then crawl to a bed and stay there for a long time." "What about the situation of the girls?" Eri asked while Shiaki hands to Benji a bottle of juice.

Benji runs his right hand on his damp hair. "See if you can convert a part of the base to a daycare or something like that." Benji answered. "Get some toys, games, clothes, and whatever you think that will keep them distracted and happy, that will work in short term enough to me to think about a more definitive solution."

Eri looks at her wristwatch. "Well there is still time to start buying the toys." Eri said. "I will borrow your maid." She said turning to Shiaki. "Sure." Shiaki replied. "Fuuka you stay to keep an eye on the kids, I won't take long and since they are sleeping they shouldn't be much of a trouble." Eri said to Fuuka.

Fuuka nodded at the order. "I will find myself a clean and empty bed and die on it." Benji said to the trio while opening the bottle. "Shiaki make sure that Mizuki gets rid of the data regarding chemical and biological weapons, that kind of knowledge isn't needed." Shiaki nodded agreeing.

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Benji turns on his bed unable to sleep any longer. "I don't know what is worse." Benji muttered throwing the covers away. "Shiaki's music or her singing voice." Benji sits up on the bed and looks at his watch. "Come on it isn't even seven in the morning, why she is so noisy?"

Ten minutes later armed with a towel Benji moves to the kitchen. "Shut up you!" Benji shouted after garroting Shiaki with the towel. "I have two hundred hours of sleep to catch up with and you aren't letting me sleep!" Shiaki flails in the air as Benji lifts her smaller body.

"I am making breakfast here!" Shiaki exclaimed. "You have a maid!" Benji shot back. "I could hear that screeching all the way to my room!" "She doesn't make the eggs in the way that I like it!" Shiaki replied. "And is my house I can be as loud as I want to here!"

"You two are like an over aggressive married couple." Mizuki said entering on the kitchen, Fuuka who was next to her seeks shelter behind a wall just in time to see the younger girl receive a throw Shiaki on her gut. "If I make a commented about you being cranky over lack of sleep I would get in trouble?" Fuuka asked poking her head by the door. "Okay that flaring death aura is enough answer for me." Fuuka meekly said moving away.

"Where is Eri?" Benji asked. "She is watching over the kids." Fuuka answered, if Benji was talking to her and not punishing her then she was safe, at least for a while. "Want me to call her?" "No." Benji replied. "Get a big car, van, minibus, whatever you can find, and bring here."

"Okay I am leaving now." Fuuka said. "You know Benji if I wasn't so nice I would get mad at you." Shiaki said standing up and dusting herself. Benji shrugged and opens the refrigerator; since he won't get any sleep then he would eat something.

"If I didn't know that you would do something worse I would curse you." Mizuki mumbled from the floor. "What you learned about the kids?" Benji asked taking an salami, cheese, sun dried tomatoes in seasoned olive oil, sliced whole wheat bread and lettuce from the refrigerator.

"The aging drug should have some withdrawn symptoms." Mizuki answered pulling herself up. "Some muscular spasms and cramps, regurgitation and short term light sensitivity. It should start in six hours." "Enough time to move to the base, in there they can pass by it less uncomfortably." Benji said. "Any violence or symptoms similar to drug abuse as in cocaine and others?"

"No." Mizuki answered. "Most of the effects last around twelve hours, and the light sensitivity lasts for one week." Benji nodded understanding and turns his focus to his soon to be sandwich.

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Now inside the captured base Benji looks at the children sited in chairs in front of him, he didn't had time or was in a good mental state to name the children in the previous day after arriving in the computer room, now rested and with a full night of sleep Benji feels ready to name them, even thought Eri and Fuuka can also do it.

"So what about Aoi to the blue haired one?" Benji asked to Eri and Fuuka. "It is a pretty name." "I don't know, naming her after her hair color?" Fuuka replied. "Sure Aoi is a pretty name but isn't like naming a cat 'Nya' after what they 'say'?" "I guess so." Benji commented.

One of the cat girls blushes as she sees Benji looking straight at her, she fidgets under his eyes, Benji smiled and the girl blushes even more. "I between three names for the cat girl with short hair." Benji said to Fuuka and Eri. "Sachiko, Hanabi and Saeki." "I don't think that she looks like a Saeki for me." Eri commented. "But Sachiko or Hanabi are more fitting to her."

"Which one you like more?" Benji asked to the cat girl. "Sachiko." She answered with an embarrassed smile. "Then it is settled." Benji said. "It is Sachiko." "Now the sister?" Fuuka asked. The other cat girl look at them eagerly, with her tail moving around excitedly.

"How does Miki sounds?" Benji asked to the girl with a smile, he just couldn't resist naming the two twin cat girls after the twin girls of Dividead. "I like it!" She exclaimed happily.

"Well that leaves eight of them." Eri commented. "What about Chinatsu to the one with cute silver hair?" "It isn't bad." Fuuka said. "But if you want summer on her name what about Natsumi?" "I like it." Benji commented. "What you think?" He asked to the silver haired girl. "I liked Natsumi too." She answered shyly. "I liked Chinatsu." The purple haired girl said meekly. "Then that is your name now." Benji said with a smile.

And after half an hour the names are decided. "Once again." Benji said looking at the triplet girls. "Chiyo, Megumi and Yuuka. Maybe we should get them different accessories or change their hairstyles."

Eri and Fuuka nodded agreeing, the girls are identical even the hair style, making impossible to tell one from the other. "But for now." Benji said sticking a piece of packing tape on each girl's shirts left breast, each one with the girl's name on it. "This will do it."

Once again Fuuka and Eri nodded agreeing. "This one is Lucia." Eri said pointing to the girl that Benji removed from the tank, from the Tecnomancer project. "Last but not the least." Fuuka said looking to the girls with dark blue and green hairs. "Reiko and Meimi."

All the girls look happy at their new names. "We pick family names later." Benji said. "Now Eri you take the girls to their rooms." "You all would like to sleep in the same room or in separate rooms?" Eri asked to them. "We also can keep sisters in a separate room for them."

"Sisters?" The girls asked confused. "Like Miki-chan and Sachiko-chan." Eri explained. "They are twins, or like Chiyo-chan, Megumi-chan and Yuuka-chan, who could be if aren't triplets." It takes a while to end the sleeping arrangements, in the end Sachiko and Miki will divide a room, Megumi, Chiyo and Yuuka would share another, and Natsumi, Reiko, Meimi, Lucia and Chinatsu would share a third one, if the CB-19 girls find trouble in sleeping in different rooms they could move to the other room.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Ranko is sited over a rock looking at the sea; she wasn't on the mood for playing even thought her friends also came to the beach with her. She didn't got a chance to speak with Benji at all, and in the moment that she had everyone was around and he was on the worse mood that she had ever seen him with, and she felt two distinct perfumes on him and none were his.

'Sure Benji is old enough to not have to give satisfactions to anyone.' Ranko thought hugging her knees. 'He is independent and doesn't need me for nothing; I am just some dead weight on his life. I am the one who needs him, when I was kidnapped with Ukyo and the others I knew that he was going to save me, when I was captured by mother's men I also knew that he was going to save me again, and what I give back to him? Nothing.'

"Still thinking about that?" Motoko asked while walking towards Ranko. "He returned unharmed, that is all that should matter." Ranko nodded, part of her agreed on that. "But Motoko I am nothing more than dead weight." Ranko said still looking at the distance. "I can't recall a time that Benji needed my help, needed me for anything; I am the one who needs him."

Motoko smiled. "And isn't that the right relation?" Motoko said sitting next to Ranko. "Shouldn't an older brother be reliable, helping his younger kin when they need him? Being a pillar of stability? An example to be followed? Admired?" Ranko remained in silence for few moments. "How should I know that Motoko?" Ranko finally said.

"Just remember how it was before you started to feel like a dead weight." Motoko replied. "I have an older sister, who I admire and respect." 'Also fear like the plague.' Motoko added to herself. "I might know that, but Ranko before this incident weren't things different?" Motoko asked.

"Yes they were." Ranko answered. "But things won't ever be like that again. Not after what I did." Motoko sighed. "Listen, give him few days, and let him alone for a while." Motoko said seriously. "He is visibly tired and moody, let him rest, recover from this recent ordeal, then call him, I am sure that when you do he won't treat you badly. And that incident will be marked as siblings' fighting."

"I don't know if I can do it." Ranko said turning to Motoko. "He can hurt me in worse ways that I can hurt him." "True Benji does seem creative when killing people but I don't think that he would torture you." Motoko commented. "I MEANT EMOTIONALLY!" Ranko exclaimed angrily. "And if you say something about psychological torture I will throw you on the sea!"

Motoko chuckled. "Now that is better." She said casually. "Listen Ranko if you keep sulking like this nothing will get better, give time some time, let things move at their own pace." Ranko sighed tiredly, she knew that Motoko was right after all and sulking like that wouldn't help her at all.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Monday Benji suddenly jumps out of the bed, the problem wasn't noise, light, or even nightmares, even thought was a dream that recalled him from something. With a sigh Benji leaves the room. Half an hour later after dealing with his needs and bathing Benji leaves the pension.

With a Yamaha V-Star 1100 Benji drives away from Hinata, while not on his list of favorites bikes Benji settled with a different cruiser instead of his favored BMW R 1200 C, his destination, Tokyo station and then Kyoto.

After two hours Benji was in Kyoto, the bullet train trip wasn't long but he needed that much time to finds a good place to discreetly meet someone, after that using a payphone Benji calls a number that he never thought that he was going to call, and waiting for the person to arrive is what consumed most of hour, but Benji wasn't in a rush now that he started things, so he was having some tea with local sweets, a good book also helped to make the waiting easier.

'I think that this tops my list of stupid things that I have done.' Benji thinks while eating a bean paste sweet. 'Organizing an almost one man conflict against an entire organization is way less dangerous than this.'

"Benji!" Benji heard a familiar voice cheerfully calling him, looking at the door Benji smiled at the smiling Tsuruko Aoyama, or as she named herself when they met Kaede Hojo, resigning to his fate Benji swallows the sweet and summons his courage, he would need every ounce of it on the conversation that will follow, after all is not every day that you will tell to one of the most dangerous women alive that you know her darkest secret.

………**Sailor Moon twist part 3…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………**

"Haruka." Ami said when the blonde senshi is about to leave the shrine with the other outers. "I know that it might sound unnecessary, but tomorrow go to my mother's clinic, it is just for precautions, but I want you to be better examined, my computer and goggles are the best medical scanners in the world, it is just to make sure that everything is fine and that the bones are well aligned."

Haruka sighed but understood the worry. "Fine, tomorrow sometime after lunch I will go there." Haruka replied. "Just exams and then go, right?" "Right." Ami confirmed with a nod. "However if we detect any anomaly you will have to stay to treatment." "Fair enough." Haruka said. "Then we will be leaving now, I want to sleep some more."

After climbing down halfway of the stairs Michiru turns to Haruka. "You are sure that you are okay?" She asked worried. "Normally you aren't that easy going." "I know but I felt first handed what I have been through." Haruka answered serious but with a smile. "So I know better than avoiding medical examination after taking such damage, I don't want to discover what kind of negative effects to my body a misplaced bone would have, specially a leg bone."

"I am more worried about your skull." Michiru said. "You aren't feeling any pain?" "None." Haruka reassured with a smile. "I never felt better, well never after taking a beating like that. And I am sure that whatever exams that Ami wants her mother to perform on me will show that I am perfectly fine."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"You are staying for treatment." Ami's mother said to Haruka seriously. "But why?!" Haruka exclaimed surprised. "I don't feel anything wrong." "Appendicitis." Aki answered seriously. "We discovered that your appendix are swelling it is still in the early stages, so you still wouldn't feel any pain, but left alone it would be painful and considering your active lifestyle a fall in advanced stages could break the inflamed appendix, and you don't want me to explain how that could kill you."

Haruka swallowed in silence, Michiru smiled and gently squeezes Haruka's hand. "At least isn't anything serious and you didn't took any damage from the fall." Michiru said in a comforting tone. "And the surgery for appendicitis isn't debilitating or stressful as others."

"She is right." Aki said with a nod. "The operation is fairly simple, it takes around fifteen minutes, based in your exams it shouldn't pass of twenty minutes, after the operation you will stay here for one day for observation and in the next morning you are free to go and do everything that you normally do. However you are required to stay here overnight tonight, you can't eat or drink anything six hours prior to the operation, so we will use an IV drip to keep you hydrated."

"I guess that taking easy two days won't hurt." Haruka said with a dry chuckle. "We will return in few hours doctor Mizuno." Michiru said to Aki. "Come on Haruka we have to pack you some clean clothes and underwear for your stay in the hospital, and we can't forget your toothbrush either."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Haruka stretches on the bed that she was given unable to sleep, it wasn't that she was angry at Ami or Michiru, they are just worried about her health, she was more worried about the surgery, as any normal person Haruka wasn't looking forward to it, she knew that the problem wasn't caused by the fight, Aki explained that to reach that stage it would take at least a couple of days and the fall as they lied about the reason of the exams just allowed a quick discover of it before became critical.

Haruka hears some noise coming from the bed next to her, Aki had explained that she would be sharing the room with another girl, she was victim of an accident and was badly hurt, but not in a life threatening manner. 'Breaking all long bones of her body sounds pretty serious to me.' Haruka thought recalling what Aki said about the other girl.

She couldn't see the girl since the curtains between the beds are blocking the view, but she recalled that she was wearing a plaster body armor. Haruka jumped startled when the room's door opens. 'Okay hospitals at night are pretty scary places I admit it.' Haruka said placing her right hand over her heart.

Then she heard a very faint sound of steps, really, really faint, moving on the room, she couldn't see the source but saw a faded shadow on the curtains. Haruka hears the sound of hair moving against fabric. "They got you pretty bad." She heard a male's voice whispering, the voice was at the same time foreign but oddly familiar.

'It is way past the visiting hours.' Haruka thought remaining in silence. In the other side of the curtain Benji hands to the girl his open cell phone. "I know that you can't speak right now, so type down everything there." Benji whispered to her. "Take your time and don't push yourself, I will be right here."

Haruka could almost hear the nod; she had no idea of what was happening but sounded serious. A soft whimper reaches Haruka's ears, straining her eyes she could see the outline of a man softly caressing something in the bed, from the location Haruka assumed that he was running his hand on the girl's hair in a comforting manner.

After few minutes of silence Haruka hears. "This is all that you know about them?" Few more moments of silence follow it. "Okay, then I will get you protection of someone who I trust." Benji said to the girl. "I will deal with this; don't worry about it, just rest and get better."

Haruka hears a conversation by the phone and less than half an hour later someone else arrives by the door, by the clicking of the shoes it wasn't a nurse, the two talk for a couple of minutes but she can't understand what they said, the man leaves and the newcomer enters in the room, sitting next to the girl.

"I will be watching you now." A feminine voice said to the girl. "Don't worry about anything, by the morning everything will be over." Haruka wonders who the girl is, why she was scared and why she was being protected by those two, and the biggest question why not even one nurse said something about those two entering in the room so late at night outside the visiting hours.

Without noticing Haruka fell on sleep and when she woke up was already morning, looking around Haruka doesn't see a sign of the nightly visitors, the girl in the other bed was as immobile and still as she was since Haruka arrived. Aki arrives and starts to tell to Haruka the procedures of the surgery.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"You know I haven't a decent night of sleep since you captured me." Fuuka said to Benji while leaning against the hospital's roof fence. "If isn't pulling all nighters is the sex nights, not that I might the sex nights but the all nighters are killing me, specially with Eri taking chunks and chunks of my energy on a daily basis."

"You get used after a while." Benji commented. "And yes Eri is hard to satisfy, I know that from personal experience, in the other hand she is topping the list of best fuck that I had." "Well I can't deny that she knows things that I never knew that was possible." Fuuka mused on loud. "All werewolves are like that?"

Benji shrugged not knowing the answer, sure he had a huge boost on that area after the curse, but Eri was the only werewolf that he ever met, well the only that he left alive too and know enough to ask about that kind of thing. "Anyway changing from sex with Eri to something else." Benji said seriously. "What about the plans? You two got everything?"

"Yes." Fuuka answered. "Now we just have to figure where place the charges on each location and we are ready to go." Benji nodded pleased. "And what about the girl?" Fuuka asked, she was up all night watching over her, at the very least she wanted a reason for that.

"How many people you killed Fuuka?" Benji asked to the red head. "Before or after capturing the base?" Fuuka replied. "It matters?" Benji asked back. "Not really, but it does racks up my body count." Fuuka answered. "Well with everyone in the base one hundred and three people."

"And since the base had seventy four people on it." Benji said. "Twenty nine people. Now you killed those at close range or long range?" "Most of them in mid to long range." Fuuka answered. "Some in close combat." "Anyway it doesn't really matter." Benji said. "Until now I killed around five hundred people, and earlier today I added twenty more on it. That is a lot of killing, a lot of people. How many people you saved Fuuka?"

"Saved?" Fuuka asked seriously. "Prevented the dead, healed, protected from imminent danger." Benji answered. Fuuka frowns and thinks hard, she was a mercenary, a trained soldier who sells her fighting skills for others and that mostly result in deaths. "I don't think that I did anything like that." Fuuka finally answered. "Sure I did some body guarding too, but never faced any threat on those."

"I don't remember where I red this, or if is a true saying, but it says 'when you saves someone's life you do a bad business since from then on that life is your responsibility and you have to take care of it forever'." Benji said pulling his phone from his pocket. "I don't know if is truth or not, I personally don't think that saving someone's life is a bad thing, anyway as you must be figured by now I saved her in the past."

Fuuka nodded confirming. "What you did?" Fuuka asked. "Before she needed to be saved she was, how can name it." Benji said looking on something on the phone's memory. "Not a hindrance but at the same time not welcomed, it is kind of hard to understand."

"I find hard to understand why you saved her when you say that about her." Fuuka said in a flat tone. "Back then I was bit more closed, I preferred keeping people at some distance." Benji explained. "Well and Saeki wasn't really helping, well breed and rich, she was used to have anything that she wanted when she wanted, quite spoiled, since I fended off her advances and didn't care about her money it just made her more interested."

"I still don't see why." Fuuka commented. "I am getting there." Benji replied. "It happened months after we first met, she got in a bad accident at least that is what I was told and got hurt pretty badly, mostly internal trauma, she had also had slipped into a coma, months passed, her wounds healed up but she was still in coma with no sign of waking up."

"Once again no reason to see why." Fuuka said. "Saeki have a sister, while nicer than Saeki in several spots she was worse than her in others." Benji continued ignoring the remark. "However even with bickering, rivalry, and all the usual things between siblings Junko does love her sister, enough to come to me when she heard about her parents pulling the plug on Saeki."

"Wait a second there." Fuuka interrupted. "If she was physically fine, pulling the plug of any machine that she was on wouldn't be harmful." "That is true, but they didn't want a vegetable out of a daughter who would require a fortune out of care inside or outside a hospital, she would need a nurse, machines that dealt with her needs, IV drips." Benji replied. "So for them it was more humane to 'let her go', then claim life insurance with some excuse as complications of her body finally giving in."

Fuuka in part could understand the logic, she didn't agree with it but understood. "So Junko came to me, who according to her sister am the man who she loves." Benji continued. "So out of sympathy I decided to go and pay her a visit, what harm that could have right? Just talking with her for a while, see if I could get any reaction out of her, that kind of stuff."

"Based on the fact that she is lucid and conscious today it worked." Fuuka commented. "Actually it didn't." Benji replied. "When I spoke to her nothing happened, no sign on the ECG, no physical reaction, no nothing. After the visit Junko thanked me for trying and was about giving up on hope of having her sister back, I was comforting her when a nurse commented to another that the girl in 471, that was Saeki's room didn't had much of a cause to get into a coma, and that she shut herself inside her mind because of something external. And yes she was tested for coma inducing drugs, it came negative."

Fuuka remained in silence, deciding to wait for Benji tell what happened. "Between Junko's tears, my curiosity and the fact that Saeki was going to be 'put to sleep' I decided to check out on what happened." Benji said seriously. "As any rich kid Saeki was in a school for 'gifted' students, she literally studded among the future politicians and company presidents of Japan, and that means that they have plenty liberties because their families."

Fuuka was starting to see the picture that Benji was drawing. "So the others did something to her?" Fuuka asked seriously. "Yes, there was this prostitution ring among the students; it also dealt with blackmail material." Benji answered. "Some of the most crafty and devious students came with the idea, they all knew that in a decade or two they would have important places in companies across Japan as well in the government, so they started making alliances, contacts, gaining favors, blackmail information, all the usual deal with people of high positions. Even being a pain and spoilt Saeki still have morals and common sense, she is the kind of person that would eventually become one of those presidents or politicians that would do good, hardworking and honest in her particular way."

"So she was a hindrance." Fuuka concluded. "Yes, she stumbled on the whole scheme, the students of one of the classrooms; at least most of them were in the middle of an orgy, gang bang, the whole deal." Benji explained. "Even some from other classes were there, anyway Saeki had to be silenced, while most of the students wanted to rape her and make her an accomplish, the ones who thought the whole thing knew better, by raping Saeki, even gang rape would give her solid evidence to call the police, as well a real crime for them to be convicted for, then they beated her up badly, they used towels over bats to not leave bruises, and beating someone to death is everything but easy and quick. And there are times that we just can't pass out."

"So she felt everything." Fuuka said in horror. "No wonder she shut herself to escape from all that pain." Benji nodded agreeing. "Making contact wasn't easy, convincing her to leave was even harder." Benji added. "It took me a handful of years." "Years?" Fuuka asked confused. "Let's just say that my method creates a huge time difference between real time and the other time." Benji explained with a smile.

"And what about the students?" Fuuka asked confused, from what she knows about Benji he wouldn't just let them walk. "Well let's just say that while I didn't kill them back then they certainly wished for that a lot." Benji answered with a smile. "Be thankful that Eri was the one who did you, if I was the one, you wouldn't be like this."

Fuuka nodded swallowing hard, she learned to notice certain things on Benji, minor details before and while he does things, and that smile topped her list of things to be very scared of, every time that he smile like that he did or planned something horrible, was an smiled of dark amusement, closer to a smirk, filled with evil that promised painful death, at least that was her interpretation of it.

"And what exactly you did now?" Fuuka asked nervous. "Did you ever read Berserk?" Benji asked casually. "No." Fuuka answered. "Well let's say that I did and got an idea from there." Benji answered. "As far the news and the police will learn sixty three students went insane while twenty six more died while performing profane sex/torture rituals among themselves and in the others, have you seen Hellraiser?"

"I am really happy that I didn't." Fuuka said pale and scared. "In times like this I really wonder if you are a good guy." "I am a good guy." Benji replied. "Just not your average 'nice guy' good guy. Think more in the lines of anti-heroes." "I still don't understand why you worry so much about this Sanae girl." Fuuka said feeling her head spinning.

"Call it compensation, or whatever you want to name it." Benji replied. "In a way maybe she is just a sort of salvation for me, after all this killing one must to cling into something." "And that things is?" Fuuka asked. "The fact that I have at least directly saved one life." Benji answered throwing his phone to Fuuka. "And changed it to the better."

"What is this?" Fuuka asked holding the phone. "Take a look." Benji answered. "A picture?" Fuuka said seeing a picture of Saeki on the phone. "Who is the other girl?" "Junko." Benji answered. "At least now the two sisters get along fine and in their new school try to prevent bullying and other sources of violence and trouble from happening."

"I am just more confused." Fuuka said handing the phone back to Benji. "When you serve who I do, you hold whatever gleam of light that you can." Benji replied pocketing his phone. "I don't get all that many chances of doing something good."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"So you feel better now?" Motoko asked to Haruka. "I wasn't feeling bad to get things started." Haruka answered casually. "But I guess that I am okay now. And as long Usagi doesn't eat it all I got some chocolate out of this." Usagi smiled embarrassed and puts the bonbon box over the bed table.

"So watched the news today?" Minako asked. "We got in there again." "Shush!" Haruka quickly shushed Minako. "We aren't supposed to speak about that, and I am sharing a room with another girl." Minako chuckled embarrassed. "Kind that forgot that." Minako commented.

"And to answer your question I didn't." Haruka said. "Since I didn't want to feel people poking my insides I asked for total anesthesia, I slept it off most of the morning and part of the afternoon." "It is a good thing." Ami commented. "One of news was pretty disturbing."

"What you mean?" Haruka asked confused. "A group of students performed some satanic or some other kind of demonic ritual, clearly powerless but twenty six of them died painful deaths while seventy of the others are now clinically insane, babbling about demons after them in constant terror." Michiru answered seriously. "It was detected high levels of drugs on the dead ones so the police are assuming that the others also took it, they have gone insane with the hallucinations."

"And they were all sons and daughters of rich and powerful families, the families are pressing for details and culprits, they don't want to accept that their children were behind that." Ami added. "They claim that someone else made them do it, but the evidence is saying otherwise, especially the fact that blood of a female student that was chained, nailed and then killed on a makeshift altar was found in the stomach of the others."

"Rich kids now days, they grow bored of everything and then using their money they start doing stupid things." Rei said in an acid and harsh voice. "They make me sick." "Now calm down." Michiru said to the others. "Haruka needs to rest and not hear how mad you are because stupid rich kids wasted their lives of wealth and luxury." "Haaaiiii!" The other senshis said as one.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Michiru is the only senshi with Haruka now; they are chitchatting when Benji enters in the room. "Hey Saeki how you are feeling now?" Benji asked moving to the other bed, not noticing the small opening of the next curtain. "Better." Saeki answered in a hoarse voice. "That juice from earlier was really good."

"That is good at least you are speaking again." Benji said sitting in the chair next to the bed. "So why took so long to me get the word about this?" "Excuse me?" Saeki asked exasperated. "I wasn't the one who suddenly vanished from the face of Earth. In case that you forgot it was you who did the vanishing trick; I have no idea of how Junko finally got in touch with you."

"I have a closer relation with her than with you." Benji replied teasingly. "So I can trust her to not babble my phone number to everyone." "I am not that bad!" Sanae exclaimed angrily. "Yeah right." Benji replied. "You would most likely brag about knowing were I am staying, in case you have forgotten I shouldn't even be here."

"I know." Sanae said seriously. "I appreciate everything, but showing a little trust wouldn't hurt." "I do trust in you, but knowing too much is dangerous." Benji replied. "Junko is tougher than you so I knew that if something happened she would know what to do. You just keep doing what you are doing; you will be out of that cast in a week or two."

"You are going to disappear again aren't you?" Saeki asked sadly. "Yes." Benji answered. "As I said I can't keep contact with people from my past life, at least not now. Besides you will do much better without me around, less distractions for you to worry about."

Saeki remained in silence, so do Haruka and Michiru; they can tell that the conversation is pretty serious. "I know that I just arrived but I need to go already." Benji said standing up. "Fuuka will be keeping an eye on you and bringing more juice for you, drink all to get better soon. I might send you something too."

"This is really unfair." Sanae whispered looking away. "Life isn't fair." Benji said with a smile. "Get used to it little sister." Benji gives her a peck on the forehead. "Can I at least get a way to getting in touch with you?" Sanae asked. "I will think about it." Benji answered. "I let you know about it later, on the meantime just get better."

Ten minutes after Benji leave the room Haruka and Michiru leave for a walk. "That was embarrassing." Michiru commented. "Overhearing that kind of conversation is really awkward." "Yeah." Haruka replied content in being walking and stretching her legs. "It sounded like something out of one of those dramas that you like to watch."

Michiru nodded agreeing. "Yes, but did you noticed his height when he passed by the gap?" Michiru asked. "Well he did look tall but I wasn't really paying attention to that." Haruka answered. "But from the perfume left in the room I know for sure that isn't Obsession."

Michiru nodded agreeing. "I know; whatever brand that the perfume was it wasn't anything that I know." Michiru commented. "But I liked it; it was a very delicious feminine fragrance. If the situation wasn't that awkward I would have asked where he got it and the name."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"You think that this is wise?" Shiaki asked to Benji. "Leaving those loose ends like that?" Benji runs his right hand on his hair. "I told you before Shiaki." Benji said seriously. "They are one of the few good things that I did, they aren't loose ends."

"You speak as if everything that you ever did was bringing horror and destruction to mankind." Shiaki commented teasingly. "You are far too young and kind to that role." "I know more than a handful of people who would disagree with you." Benji replied with his hands on his pockets.

Shiaki sighed. "Anyway Benji you should get them some better protection." She said seriously. "This time she got lucky and escaped again with minor wounds, but if you really treasure her and her sister then you have to get her a fitting protection."

"Isn't like I have enough people to ask that." Benji replied. "Just look at me Shiaki, at the tops I can only call to my aid ten people, and that not counting Eri and Fuuka. And I don't have all that many people who I trust enough to protect them."

Shiaki had to agree with that. "Well you do are a nasty little devil." She teased. "All your good deeds are laced with evil and suffering. No wonder you can't rally anyone. But who are those ten people?"

"You are one of them." Benji answered. "Elder Cologne and Shampoo are two others. Throw Ranma in too, Ryoga and maybe Ukyo, Konatsu too." "That makes seven." Shiaki said. "You still need three more to get ten."

"I have few more contacts and cards on my sleeve that I won't tell you about." Benji replied. "But they aren't fighters as Ranma and the others; they are more supportive than that."

Shiaki frowned but also understood. "You know hanging out with Cologne killed your social life." Shiaki commented. "You also worked your best to make sure that would stay dead."

"It isn't like I have room to make friends you know." Benji said acidly. "Before Nodoka hunting us I was busy training, dealing with the now former Nerima wrecking crew and everything that came with it, school, keeping secrets from everyone, then curse. Now I am busy living on a fake identity, killing people, stealing, lying, plotting, dealing with Ranma, few others, managing Eri and Fuuka, training, and the list keeps growing."

"Aren't you a busy boy?" Shiaki teased. "But yes you do have a busy schedule, still you should friend some allies, you know a soldier needs his allies. Sure quality works wonders and you do have some quality fighters in your group, but sometimes quantity really helps too. Try broadening your horizons, seeking friends in other places, getting a life."

Benji glared at his teacher. "You are telling me to get a life?" Benji hissed dangerously. "How I am supposed to get a life when I live under the fear of being located and hunted like a rabid animal!"

"Okay let's forget about that last comment, listen Benji I know that your life isn't easy right now but you shouldn't let it overrule you." Shiaki said trying to defuse her disciple. "Get a break, forget about everything, go to a nudist beach or something, maybe find one of your one night stands and get another one night stand. You are getting too stressed and angered easily."

Benji remained in silence. "I know what you need!" Shiaki exclaimed. "You need a good massage! Yeah! Soft and skilled hands caressing your tired body rubbing the stress away! I know the perfect place for that! They even have attractive females working there! And based on what I know about you, you might get lucky and get more than a massage!"

Before Benji can protest Shiaki jumps on her feet and screams while pointing up. "It is decided!" Benji sighed as everyone in the café look at them. 'Why I bother on keeping her around?' Benji thought as Shiaki drags away.

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"As soon I get feelings on me again I will kill you." Benji said to Shiaki. "Come on Benji that wasn't all that bad." Shiaki protested, even being more skilled than Benji, Benji was quite stubborn and hard to stop when motivated, if determined he would hurt her a lot before she stops or kill him.

But at the moment Benji is sited with his head resting on the table of the spa's restaurant. "I heard about that torture that they called Russian massage, I never thought that you would make be get one." Benji muttered tiredly, he can't believe that it was supposed to feel good.

"It doesn't feel good to stretch out all those muscles?" Shiaki asked casually. "Popping those bones back in place." "I can do that by myself in a pleasurable way!" Benji hissed. "I don't need someone torturing me and calling it ancient massage!" "Mou Benji keep an open mind." Shiaki chuckled. "I do that after every party, it feels great." "You are masochist." Benji shot back.


	11. Retying bonds

Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic. This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Love Hina I don't own or any of the characters of those shows. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed: Benji Himura.

This story begins in the Ranmaverse somewhere in the middle of the events of the chapter thirteen, actually between the release of Hinako and the events of the Gamble King events.

In the Love Hina timeline in the manga it stars after the chapter twenty six but before the chapter twenty seven.

This is a crossover so both stories casts or at least part of them will interact and there will be changes on both stories and on the plotline of Outcast Ranma. For anyone following the main story this scenario doesn't follow the same 'timeline' from the main story, it works on the line that timeline show on the story is the original one.

"Text" Talked sentences.

'Text' Thoughts.

-Text- Sounds effects.

(Text) Talked sentences in a foreign language as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

**Text**: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

_Text_: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

"_Text"_ Alteration in the voice, not in the tone but the voice itself.

Chapter eleven: Retying bonds

"Benji!" Benji heard a familiar voice cheerfully calling him, looking at the door Benji smiled at the smiling Tsuruko Aoyama, or as she named herself when they met Kaede Hojo, resigning to his fate Benji swallows the sweet and summons his courage, he would need every ounce of it on the conversation that will follow, after all is not every day that you will tell to one of the most dangerous women alive that you know her darkest secret.

Benji had to admit that Tsuruko was stunning. 'Who would guess that wearing just a pair of jeans and a long sleeved top would make her even more beautiful?' Benji thought as she walks on his direction drawing the attention of everyone in the small café.

Tsuruko sits facing Benji and smiled. "I hope that you weren't waiting too long." Tsuruko said in an apologetic tone. "I don't keep that cell phone on me all the time." "I kept myself distracted." Benji replied. "So I didn't mind waiting." Tsuruko chuckled heartily at his words. "I have to admit that after this long without hearing from you I thought that you weren't going to call again." She said with a smile.

Seeing Tsuruko's good mood made hard to Benji find the right time to tell her what he has too. "Well my life has turned quite eventful since then." Benji said calling a waitress. Tsuruko orders some tea and more sweets for them, after they arrive Benji takes a deep breath, and makes sure to wait to Tsuruko swallow the tea that she just sipped before start talking.

"I called you for a reason." Benji said seriously. "And as much I would love to continue things as we left, this reason is more important." Tsuruko looks at Benji, she appreciated the honesty but in her situation that kind of thing isn't all that welcomed. "You are getting married?" Tsuruko asked. "And you want to set things straight before that?"

"If was just that my life would be so much easier." Benji answered with a sigh. "Before you go ballistic and try killing me hear everything that I have to say okay? And keep in mind that in no moment I intend to use what we have shared and my knowledge as leverage against you."

Tsuruko looks at him seriously, his words made clear that things aren't as easy as she wanted to be. "Four months ago a serious incident took place, and that turned my life upside down." Benji said seriously. "I left the place where I lived with someone who I protect, after two weeks I found a place for us to stay, but because my situation, which I will detail later, I did a background search on the people who live in that place."

Benji takes a deep breath and smile sadly. "Because of that search I learned something." Benji continued. "The sister of one of the people living in that place was someone who I met months before that, on that moment I learned your true identity, Tsuruko Aoyama."

Tsuruko's eyes harden at his revelation and she stares at Benji's eyes. "Calm down." Benji said keeping his cool. "Didn't I just tell you that I won't use what I know against you? I came here to talk to you, not blackmail you."

"Why this?" Tsuruko asked with a dangerous edge on her voice. "I was truly happy in seeing you again Benji; I really was hoping that we would share another special moment like we did when you first came to Kyoto."

"I am doing this because of what we did." Benji answered honestly. "I have no malice on this visit, listen to my story, after you did if you don't have to have any kind of contact with me it is okay, when we come to meet again which will eventually happen since the person who I protect lives with your sister and I am living in the same pension because special circumstances we will meet again, if you wish to cut ties so when that happens we will be perfect strangers."

Benji pauses and sees Tsuruko's reaction, she was angry and tense, but wasn't showing signs that she would jump on his throat. "And if after you hear my tale and want to be friends then when we meet again you introduce me to your sister as an old acquaintance." Benji said seriously. "And keep in mind that in whatever decision that you make I won't ever speak to anyone about us."

Tsuruko takes a deep breath, to ease her feelings and sooth her mind. "Speak." Tsuruko said looking at Benji, and so Benji told her everything since he left Kyoto, about being cursed, about the hunt, moving to Hinata, his quest to destroy Nodoka's organization and how it ended, everything until the moment that they met.

Tsuruko looks at her tea cup, the tea now cold and untouched since the conversation started. "And that is all?" Tsuruko asked him. "Yes." Benji answered, it pained him to see such confused, sad, angry and betrayed expression on her face.

"You know." Tsuruko said after few moments. "You are my first lover, the only man that I have ever shared a bed with other than my husband; there wasn't anyone before you, as there wasn't any after you. But for that I had to lie to you, pretend to be someone else, someone single and uncompromised with anyone. And here you come telling that impossible story after telling me that you learned about my lie, asking to me to help you if you need my help, how I am supposed to believe in that? Even if you tell me that is all truth."

"Tsuruko what other reason I would have to come here and tell to you what I haven't to anyone else who I trust?" Benji asked. "If I was going to lie to you why I would come up with this unlikely story, tell you that just last week I murdered hundreds of people?" "Let's pretend that I buy that story of yours." Tsuruko said seriously. "What is the point of coming all the way here, tell me all that and ask for my assistance?"

"As I told you Tsuruko I was cursed, so was the one who I protect, Ranko, until now no one in Hinata knows about our curses." Benji answered. "We know that we are bound to be found sooner or later, because of that we avoid situations that would lead to wrong assumptions in the future, Ranko never baths or changes with a girl around, watch any girl changing or in less than decent amount of clothes on, she never does anything that would lead anyone to think that she used her curse to abuse from their trust. I try doing the very same, but is harder to pretend to be a wolf than it is pretend to be a girl. Why I am telling you all this? Because when the time comes and the truth is exposed either by accident or intentional I wanted someone who would help the others to understand things, to calm them."

"Trust me Benji I wouldn't be calm either, I don't even buy this curse story of yours." Tsuruko replied. "But if is true I would be angry to learn that a man was using an animal form and having me to caress him." "It wasn't me who started or asked for it." Benji said. "And I can understand the anger, and I can prove the curse to you, and if you want I will do it in a less public place."

Tsuruko remained in silence for a while. "So other than that what you want from me?" Tsuruko asked. "You have to have other motives than that." Benji nodded confirming. "It isn't anything bad." Benji answered. "Before the hunt, the people who I was friends with and me were facing some unknown enemy, and we suspected of an incoming war between us and them, and honestly speaking my side isn't near ready for war. I am not asking you to become a soldier; I am just asking is that if the time comes you would fight with me. You are free to say yes or no, if you deny I will get out of your life."

"And if I say yes?" Tsuruko asked. "Then we see what to do." Benji answered. "Is up to you, if you want to continue our past relation or forget it and just be acquaintances or companions."

Tsuruko thinks about his words in silence, she can't disregard everything mystical that he said, she knew better than that, after all she is a retired demon slayer, she knows the world of magic and demons that most humans forgot about, the curse wasn't so strange, she saw plenty of strange stuff in her past, and she didn't detect any malice or second intentions on Benji, he had even told her the name that he was using, where he is living and about the group of children that he had just rescued, far too many details and information far too much to someone who you intend to betray or trick.

Sure she was angry about him telling her that he learned about her farce, that he was living with her sister, and that most of his interactions with her was as a wolf that she had great fondness to, but he also told that he had never licked her, which for wolves meant kissing, never abused of her trust or used his lupine form to see her changing.

The fact that he taught to Motoko how it felt to stab a human was something else that made her angry, but she also knew how Motoko was stubborn and once with an idea on her mind how she can't be convinced of something else, with all that on the light, plus how she feels about him and how he haven't used the knowledge that he gained to blackmail her to anything, Tsuruko was pending to accept Benji's request.

She knows how easily he could have placed her in a bad situation if he wanted to, how he could make her pay huge sums of money to not reveal their past relation, he was even willing to forget all about it if she refuses to help him and don't want to see him again.

Tsuruko takes a deep breath. "After thinking about everything." She said seriously. "I am bothered by the fact that you taught to my sister the feeling of killing someone, as well how she treats your cursed form, however I do know my sister very well and I know that under all that formality, pride and stiffness of hers there is a gentle, affectionate and loving girl who does love some animals, and I also know how stubborn she is, and while unhappy about you teaching her the feel of killing while I don't think that she is ready, I do understand that ready or not she would somehow learn it, and I trust you to make it the most traumatic as possible so she would be scared of it."

"It was quite shocking to her." Benji commented. "Forcing her to stab my while she cried and protested not wanting to do it, is quite traumatic." Tsuruko nodded pleased, that would prevent Motoko from getting seduced from the sensations of killing, at least until Motoko can learn more about it.

"And I do trust on you." Tsuruko said. "Based in what we shared, and that you offered me to refuse you without you using our relation against me, as well the fact that you trusted me with things that you didn't trust with anyone who wasn't directly involved on the events. So I will help you, I do care about you, I know that you did what you felt that was right about everything, so if I can be of any help I will help."

Benji smiled and thanked Tsuruko; they remain in a comfortable silence for few minutes. "So what we do now?" Tsuruko asked running her index finger on the rim of her tea cup. "What you want to do?" Benji asked back.

Tsuruko smiled at him. "Well I did came here all excited and happy about meeting my lover once again." Tsuruko purred. "Are we still lovers?" Benji felt a shiver running up and down his spine and the hairs in the back of his neck standing up in the ends at her purr and seductive expression; she had a totally different style than Eri that was enhanced by her traditional Japanese beauty, but was as effective and powerful as Eri's.

"As far as I know we are." Benji answered smiling back at her. "Then we should move to somewhere more private." Tsuruko said pleased. Benji smiled and pay the bill. "You are going to get a night that you aren't ever going to forget." Benji softly whispered on Tsuruko's ear as they stand up, she shivers at his low and soft whisper, and holds on his left arm.

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Ranko sighed annoyed, that she minded working as a waitress, she did plenty of that in the past to not be bothered by how people looked at her, it also wasn't the troubles of the Hinata-sou inhabitants, she learned to not make a big deal out of them, it was the fact that she can't get in touch with Benji.

She had called several times during the Sunday and many more Monday's morning, he not even picked up, but she always ended on the voice mail. The work helped to keep her distracted, so did her friends but whenever she had a break she would drift back to all the unsolved issues with Benji.

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Tsuruko sighed in pleasure as she nests against Benji, pressing her body against his, with his left arm around her shoulders; they are covered by a quite wrinkled white sheet. "You did say that was going to be memorable." Tsuruko whispered with her head pillowed on Benji's shoulder. "And barely two hours have passed. You definitely got much better."

Benji softly caressed her silky and lightly moist long hair. "Why the silence?" Tsuruko asked looking up at him. "I don't want to bring up others to our moment." Benji answered. Tsuruko nodded understanding. "Thank you for the thought." She said with a smile. "But I know very well that I haven't claimed exclusivity on you, and whoever you were with before did help you to polish your skills. I can't complain about that."

"But I am amazed with the amount of bruises and scars on your body." Tsuruko said seriously. "I don't recall that many." "I told you before that I was in a really rough path of my life until now." Benji replied with a smile. "But they will be gone in a couple of weeks."

"Good." Tsuruko said kissing Benji. "Tsuruko mind if I ask you something personal?" Benji asked to the woman on his arms. "Well considering what we are doing is so intimate and personal, and on what we agreed earlier it is okay, so go ahead." Tsuruko answered with a smile, for her it meant more intimacy between them.

"Why you were looking for a lover?" Benji asked in a light serious tone. "I mean from what I gathered you were supposed to be happily married." Tsuruko was expecting that question to surface sooner or later.

"Benji did you ever married?" Tsuruko asked. "No." Benji answered, it was true. "Lived together with someone?" She asked again. "That I did, I still do." Benji answered. "I lived with my family, and then with Ranko, now I live in the same pension of your sister."

"Then you know how it is." Tsuruko said seriously. "Living with someone else, twenty four hours a day, seven days a week, you know the time, well not all the time together, but you know that when you live together you see mostly everything about the other person, you also exposes about everything about you."

Benji nodded understanding, when you live together with someone you do see things that others wouldn't see. "Things that when dating I found cute or even okay became annoying." Tsuruko continued. "Things that he did or didn't do weren't funny anymore, when dating I would laugh it off. It isn't like suddenly a happy marriage turned bad, but it also wasn't all that gradual either. I had accepted to change my lifestyle, he would also change his so we would be together, for a while it was like that."

Tsuruko pause and takes a deep breath. "The first years were just like when we were dating." Tsuruko said. "We were happy and loved each other and being with each other, but things started to wear out after few years, he wasn't correcting his flaws of connivance, things that I have asked him to not to he would continue doing, or things that I asked him to do he wouldn't do it, like I asked him to not throw his wet towel on our bed, he would do it every single time, the covers would get damp and would smell, that is just one example."

Benji remained in silence. "It was bearable for a while." Tsuruko continued. "He would try to correct things after I told him about them, but a couple days later he would get back to the old ways, it start to get irritating after a while, then he wasn't paying as much attention on me as he used to, I blamed that on the passion wearing off, at that time in the marriage comes the love as things stabilize, I thought that was okay, I didn't asked for him always pay attention to me as he used to in the past, but when I asked for it he was getting more and more uninterested, when I would show him affection he would start complaining about how I was choking him with it, not giving him any space. Eventually we even stopped making love, it had been around one year since we had fully stopped when I met you, and I was tired of being ignored, of hearing his painful words responding to everything that I said."

Benji couldn't understand how a man would ignore a woman as Tsuruko, turning down her affections. "What?" Tsuruko asked seeing Benji's expression. "I can't believe that someone would be that stupid." Benji answered. "How can someone ignore you? You are gorgeous; if you were mine I think that I wouldn't able to stay away from you."

Tsuruko smiled brightly and kissed him. "In case that you forgot I am yours now." Tsuruko whispered against his lips. "But thank you for your words; you don't know how good it feels to hear them after what I experienced." Benji kissed Tsuruko back. "I just say this." Benji replied. "His loss, my gain."

Tsuruko smiled again. "True." She said. "Okay I am ready for more. I have plenty of months of pent up lust to catch up with and you are going to make catch them." "Yes ma'am." Benji replied kissing Tsuruko, he doesn't care to learn more about her reasons, if her husband wasn't even trying to keep Tsuruko's love wasn't Benji's problem, Benji knew that after the marriage doesn't mean that you are supposed to stop your efforts to keep your lover interested and happy, you have to increase them.

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"It isn't like I am happy that you are leaving." Tsuruko said to Benji. "But I don't think that I would be able to take it any longer. Two days in a row, almost non-stop, I am not in shape for that." Benji smiled at the swordswoman, he knew that the increased stamina would surprise her.

"You could have stayed in the hotel and rested some more." Benji said with a smile. "You didn't have to see me off here in the station." Tsuruko smiled back. "I wanted to." She replied. "You did give to me an unforgettable time, and I do look forward to the next time, then I will be fit for it. I realized that I have slacked off in my training."

"You have my number now." Benji said. "You can call me anytime." "I know." Tsuruko replied. "Wait a minute." Benji looks at her a bit surprised, Tsuruko takes something from her pants' pocket. "Give me your right wrist." She said, Benji does so but is confused.

"You always use the watch there?" She asked seeing Benji's watch on his right wrist. "Yes." Benji answered with a small smile. "Since I was a boy." She smiled and takes his left hand. "Then the left one will do it." She said; she quickly straps a flat two centimeters wide thin bracelet on Benji's wrist.

"What is this?" Benji asked looking at the bracelet, it looked like made of metal, but was as malleable and felt like it was made of silk. Tsuruko smiled. "It is a charm." She answered. "It is a secret charm that I learned to make years ago; it will protect you from harmful influences. I made for you in my free time, in the not so vain hope now of seeing you again. Don't worry my sister doesn't know it, and you can bath with it, the water won't damage it."

Benji nodded understanding, they hear the announcement that the train to Tokyo is about to leave. "It is sad that you can't stay any longer." She said. "But you can always come back, or I can go visit you." "It is the same distance in either direction." Benji said with a smile, and then he kisses Tsuruko.

Tsuruko wraps her arms around his neck and kisses Benji back, savoring the farewell kiss, knowing that for an unknown amount of time it will he their last one. After a long while they break the kiss. "And Tsuruko." Benji said before boarding. "It works both ways."

Tsuruko nodded understanding what he said, she didn't need an explanation, he just said that if she needed his help all that she had to do was ask for it and she would readily get it.

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Benji picks his cell phone and puts the battery back on. "It has been a good day, I am still alive and Tsuruko is my ally." Benji commented turning the phone on. "Six hundred and forty six unread messages?" Benji murmured when seeing the message that appeared as soon the phone started.

Browsing through the messages, voice mails and missed calls he sees that is all from Ranko. "Now that I think about it I haven't given her much attention recently." Benji mused scratching his chin. "Between dealing with the organization, Nagisa and now Tsuruko. AH! I forgot all about Nagisa!"

Benji ignores the passengers looking at him and he quickly dials Rin's number on the phone. "Come on Rin, pick it up." Benji said while it calls. "Hello?" Rin said from the other side. "Rin it is me Benji." Benji said. "Is everything okay? Is Nagisa fine?" "She is doing well." Rin replied cheerfully. "We are having tons of fun together, Benji she is a natural in puzzle games! She is totally beating me when we play Money Idol Exchanger!"

Benji sighed relived. "So you two are getting along well?" Benji asked. "Of course we are." Rin answered. "She is like the cute little sister that I always wanted to have. You are going to pick her up any time soon?" "Not yet." Benji replied. "I am still thinking on what to do; I am calling today because it slipped out of my mind to check in."

He can hear Rin chuckling on the other side of the line. "Well we are fine, having lots of fun." Rin said. "Just let me know when you are ready to pick her up." "I will." Benji replied. "And Rin don't spoil her too much." "Hai!" Rin said cheerfully. 'Well at least that is going well.' Benji thinks as the line disconnects.

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Ranko throws herself her room floor. "If I see another plate or get hit on again today I swear that I will go berserk." Ranko said. "Come on Ranko it isn't all that bad." Riko said to her friend. "We aren't the ones washing the dishes." "And that happens since we are what attracts the costumers to the teahouse." Tomomi added. "And it is good since we get plenty tips."

"I am tired of this." Ranko said with a sigh. "Come on it barely have three days that we are working as waitresses." Riko replied. "It is just Tuesday, we just started working Sunday." Tomomi nodded agreeing. "I don't like boys ogling over my body." Ranko said.

"I know that can be a bit uncomfortable, but it is part of life you know." Tomomi commented. "When you are pretty you draw attention." Ranko sighed again; she can't just tell them the truth. "I will go take a walk." Ranko said standing up. "Want some company?" Riko offered. "Thanks but I feel like being alone now." Ranko replied. "After three days with so much attention some lack of it wouldn't hurt."

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Ranma sits on the edge of a cliff. "It is the first time in so many time that I stay like this." He said to himself. "It feels awkward and different." Ranma was back to his male form, it was the first time in several months that he remained as male for more than few minutes. "It almost feels wrong."

The solitude was good, the ocean breeze was cool and the moon offered plenty of light, the best of it all was the privacy, it was the first time that he could remember that he could be alone with out worrying about anyone or anything. "Maybe things would be different if Benji and I had fled to some deserted location." Ranma said looking at the stars. "This kind of solitude isn't all that bad."

"Maybe if we had truly fled Benji wouldn't kill a family that I didn't even knew that I had." Ranma said closing his eyes. "Relatives that I had never met, I shouldn't blame him since it was mother's decision that made them expel her from the family, and later was the old man's decision that kept me away not only from them but from mother. Benji tried his best to make things right, and how I repay him? First I get him cursed, then I make him look over me, and lastly I nearly killed him with only one strike. No wonder he isn't returning my calls. I am just surprised that took him that long to move away."

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"Fuuka can you make a police report?" Benji asked to the magician. "Depends of what kind." Fuuka answered. "I need charges on someone, child abuse and child rape." Benji explained. "I have DNA material, pictures of the victim and other pieces of evidence. So I need you to make a case that would give me the guardianship of a child, we are cousins, but since I altered my identity I need you to alter hers too and make the case on her new name."

Fuuka sighed. "You never make things easy for me." She complained. "It can be done but I need time, what is her new name?" "First name Nagisa." Benji answered. "Family name Ayase. Father Kouichi, dead, suicide when exposed, mother Shion, decease cause accidental fall from a step of stairs."

"Okay that is enough for me to start." Fuuka said. "But what about school?" "She was home schooled, so no one would discover about the father's perversion, we check her level of knowledge later." Benji answered. "You will find more information about her in the computer; she was part of the Himura family."

"So you aren't really cousins." Fuuka said, she already knew that Benji wasn't connected to the family. "Well I will start working on it. What you will do now?" "I am going to take a small vacation, go so somewhere peaceful and relax for one week." Benji answered. "You are Eri need to watch over the girls, and you also need to get Nagisa's new identity ready." Fuuka sighed but nodded, she knew that she would eventually get some rest too.

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Benji leaps over a fallen tree, he lands smoothly not losing any of the speed that he build up to that moment. Less than a dozen meters ahead of his is a large deer running from the predator. Benji was savoring the hunt even in his human form, so different of everything that he had done in the past; that was a pure killing, the reason the purest of it all, food.

Benji closes in and leaps over the deer, impacting on the animal's neck, Benji buries his feet on the ground and while hugging tightly the deer's neck he breaks it with ease. Taking a deep breath Benji smiled dropping the limp animal. Then he picks it up and shoulders it, carrying it back to what he is calling of camp side.

Nothing more than an improvised hut made of leaves and branches near a small creek. Benji ties the hind legs of the deer on a tall branch and starts skinning it, the deer would be his food source for at least three days.

'All this contact with nature made me realize that all that killing that I did was unnatural.' Benji thought while he works on the deer with his knife. 'It wasn't to destroy my enemy, payback on those who betrayed and hunted me; here it was just to fill my stomach, to feed a beast, just part of the food chain.'

Half an hour later Benji is roasting one quarter of the deer while smoking the rest of it, he wasn't carrying anything other than one knife, the clothes that he is wearing a belt bag with a compass, a metal mug, a spoon of string and a flint. He had got rid of the guts of the deer, burying them away from there, he would work on the hide, he was sure that Eri or Fuuka would like a fur coat.

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Ranko was taking one of her breaks from serving the tables, almost two weeks have passed since she last saw Benji, the lack of news added to how her last contact was, just made it all look as if he have abandoned her, she was already starting to believe that she wouldn't ever see him again.

Motoko was also taking a break, thanks to Ranko's friends they had enough staff to take breaks in pairs even with the tea house packed of costumers, Motoko knew what was going on with Ranko; she couldn't blain the younger girl for what she is feeling. Few hours later they are moving to the summer festival of the area.

"Come on Ranko cheer up." Riko said to her friend. "Yeah we are lucky in being here in time for the summer festival." Kitsune added. "We should have fun and enjoy it." "Just because is a festival doesn't mean that I should be happy." Ranko replied. 'Why this feels kind of familiar?' Ranko mused. 'Déjà vu?'

"AH!" A girl exclaimed when she runs into Motoko. "You are okay?" Motoko asked crouching to help the child. "Nagisa! Don't run like that!" A familiar male voice called, Ranko and Motoko's ears perked when hearing that long unheard voice. "Ah…" Benji exclaimed seeing in who Nagisa ran into.

Nagisa stands up and runs to Benji holding on his leg. The Hinata girls look at him confused. "Benji-san?" Shinobu said looking at the tall man. "It is a really long story." Benji said, he was there to meet Ranko and the others, but since he didn't knew where exactly they were staying and Nagisa wanted to go to the festival Benji decided to kill time there until the morning. "Let's say that she is the reason that I was absent."

"Who is she?" Haruka asked seriously, she didn't liked of the idea of Benji who she had little information as well trust on appearing out of the nowhere with a young girl with him.

"She is our cousin." Benji answered. "I was in court this last week and a half, because her father was discovered a pedophile, then killed himself, as her closer adult relative I was named her guardian, but the process wasn't simple since I have changed names because my parents, so changing Nagisa's last name and everything else in the process took time."

Ranko looks troubled and looks from the girl to Benji, and then back to the girl. She did saw the news that Benji killed everyone in her family including the young heir named Nagisa. Haruka looks suspiciously at Benji. "I have all the paperwork back in my hotel if you want to check it." Benji said to Haruka. "I will." Haruka replied.

Nagisa looks at Haruka and then hold tighter on Benji's leg. "Haruka-san you are scaring her like that." Motoko said to the older woman. Haruka turned her nose and walks away from there.

"Well I knew that I wasn't on her good side." Benji commented seeing her walking away. "We will leave the three of you alone." Motoko said to Benji, while pushing the others away. Benji smiled knowing that he would have to make up to Motoko later. "And yes Ranko I didn't lied about her." Benji said turning to Ranko. "She is your cousin."

"Why?" Ranko asked in verge of tears. "I couldn't leave her alone after everything." Benji answered. "I mean why you haven't returned my calls?" Ranko said crying. Benji chuckled embarrassed. "It is a complex story." He replied. "Let's say that between two rushed days, catching up on sleep, dealing with Nagisa as well more things I forgot."

"You forgot?" Ranko asked surprised. "Benji I called you thousands of times!" "I know. Sorry." Benji said apologetically. "I thought that you have abandoned me!" Ranko hiccupped. "That you hated me!"

Benji pulls Ranko in a hug. "I don't hate you." Benji said. "I just had a complex week." "She told me to not bother you." Ranko cried. "That because of me you suffered serious injuries." "She who?" Benji asked confused. "That woman that you gave me the number to call on emergencies." Ranko answered.

"Well Eri altered the truth." Benji said. "I did get some nasty bruises, well few broken bones and sprained muscles added to damaged organs thanks to your hit, and all that after I was healed. Eri can get quite protective; she gets mad when I get hurt, especially when you hurt me since she knows that I will forgive without second thoughts. She did that out of spite, but there is a lesson there too you know."

"I know." Ranko sobbed holding on his shirt. "Not hurt a loved one." Benji nodded agreeing, later he would scold Eri but for now he would let it slide since now he was sure that Ranko wouldn't make that kind of stupid thing anymore. Nagisa patiently waits for Ranko to calm and Benji speak with her.

"Well then." Benji said after Ranko stopped crying. "Now let me introduce the two of you. Ranko this is Nagisa, your cousin, Nagisa this is Ranko." Ranko looks at the little girl with short raven hair wearing a cute yukata with firework designs on it, and Nagisa is looking at the taller girl with bright orange hair wearing a yukata with a moon design on it.

The two hug each other, Benji smiled and looked around knowing that the Hinata girls were nearby, he could smell them, and he also knew them well enough to know that they don't resist in peeking on other people's business.

Benji follows the group as they have fun and play on the stands, he wasn't there to play, but just to watch over Nagisa, let her play and have fun with Ranko, her only live relative. Benji isn't all that surprised in seeing Naru and Keitaro fighting in their own way.

"Why you are keeping this distance?" Motoko asked to Benji after moving closer of him. "I just don't feel like playing." Benji answered. Motoko nodded understanding, if she had killed as many as Benji killed in the past months she wouldn't be as light hearted as he normally is.

"I want to tell you something." Motoko said. "Don't over react about this, but Ranko told me the truth." Benji sighed at Motoko's words, a couple weeks earlier he would be surprised, but now, not much could surprise him. "So you hate us now?" Benji asked. "No." Motoko answered. "I understand you two a bit better now, but I just have one question."

Benji looks at Motoko, and she looks at him. "It was revenge?" Motoko asked seriously. "You did all that for revenge on the girl that betrayed your feelings? That is why you haven't fled the country and decided to strike back?"

"I can't deny that there was a hint of revenge on it." Benji answered sitting on a table with the girls' prizes from the shooting stand. "But most of the reason wasn't that. How we could live a life when we would always fear being hunted or killed by them? Always on the run, never trusting on anyone, not having friends."

Motoko remained in silence, she could understand his reasons. "And there is more." Benji added. "Nagisa isn't the only one who I saved that day. There is ten more, but unlike Nagisa, the others were submitted to experiences, and they would suffer and eventually die as test subjects, never having a chance of living a normal life. I knew that she would hunt us and others; use them on experiences and torture them, not only for me and Ranko, I had to end it all for the sake of the innocent."

"And what you will do now?" Motoko asked. "Return to your past life?" She feared that now without the organization hunting them Benji would leave. "No, I kind of got used to this name." Benji answered. "Besides it is just a name. I might as well continue using this one, I still haven't thought on what I want to do now, but for a while I will just move with the flow and see what happens."

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After hours in the festival Ranko finally found time to be alone with Benji, everyone else was sleeping in the hotel, tired of the busy day and night. "You want to know how it ended?" Benji asked to Ranko while looking at the clear sky.

Ranko nodded. "I wouldn't mind knowing that we aren't being hunted anymore." Ranko answered. "Considering everything I think that we aren't." Benji replied. "There isn't an organization anymore."

"So mother is…?" Ranko couldn't end the sentence. "Yes." Benji answered. "Sixty six bullets, plus a large bomb, them to be even more sure I blew a whole building on top of her, she is dead and buried under thousands of tons of debris, any deader than that is impossible. Same goes to Nabiki and Kasumi."

"I should be happy." Ranko said in a shaky voice. "I know that I really should be happy about that, but…" Benji smiled, he knew what Ranko is feeling. "It is okay." Benji said hugging Ranko. "Let it out, I know that it hurts."

Shaking Ranko holds on Benji and cries loudly, even if was just for a short while, just a little less than two years, Ranko had a loving mother and two girls that she considered sisters, who she cared and loved as such.

Without any reason, any warning or explanation those three wanted her dead, she buried all the hurt feelings deep down on her mind, not wanting to face them, confront whatever horrible truth that lied behind their reasons. Now she won't ever know why they did that, why they changed so much.

Benji continued to hold her, silently comforting her, he couldn't offer anything else to her, no answers, and no reasons for their actions, Benji didn't found any when investigating, he didn't bothered to ask before killing them, and later he was too worried with 'his' new surrogate daughters to worry about that. So all that he could do was let Ranko unwind, cry until she couldn't cry anymore, and perhaps then she would feel better.

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Ranko couldn't help on smiling at Nagisa as she play with Sarah, Kaola and Shinobu, Benji had left earlier to wrap up few things before they all returned to the pension in the next day. Ranko learned the details around Nagisa's presence there and felt really sorry for the girl.

Haruka also learned more about Nagisa from Benji, backed by the documents produced by Fuuka and the evidence collected by Rin from Nagisa it was more than enough to make Haruka accept the girl's new situation. Motoko was also informed by Ranko about Nagisa, while it fed her almost dead despise for males, now she knew that not all men were like that.

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Benji places his Enfield revolver on a metal case with rubber foam insert. "I didn't used you as much as I thought that I would." Benji said running his fingertips on the jet black barrel. "And Elder Cologne had lots of troubled having you made, for now rest there, I will take you out once and a while for cleaning, hopefully I won't have to fire you or any other gun anymore."

Benji closes the box and places inside an already filled chest along with several other weapons; knives, shurikens, guns, bombs and several others. Closing and locking the chest Benji places one of his jackets over it, then the jacket falls on the floor. "That was all that I had here." Benji said looking around. "Everything else is in the armory or in the hidden space; I hope that and I won't need them anymore and they will stay there."

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Ranko sighed annoyed. "I don't want to go back to school." She complained while eating breakfast with the other tenants, including Nagisa. "It isn't all that bad." Motoko replied. "Isn't your club supposed to get some new materials this new semester?"

Ranko nodded confirming. "Still I don't like studying." Ranko said. "It is boring." "You need to set an example to your cousin now." Motoko said seriously. "She is also starting on a new school today." Nagisa was happy in finally being able to go to school with all the other kids of her age.

"You know I get impressed in how quickly your brother manages in finding good schools and enroll you in." Keitaro commented. "He said that he had to ask few favors to get Nagisa on Yuzuhara elementary school." Ranko said. "And that Nagisa aced the entry test. She was supposedly to start on the third grade but he said that would better for her start in the first."

"I wonder what kind of favors he had to ask to do that." Naru mused suspiciously. "And where is he anyway?" "He left earlier today, he said that he had some important arrangements to take care off." Shinobu answered. "Since Yuzuhara school is near my school he asked me to take Nagisa-chan there." Nagisa nodded confirming Shinobu's words.

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"Aren't your class supposed to get a new homeroom teacher today since Shigure-sensei is on a leave?" Motoko asked to Ranko. "Yes." Ranko answered with a nod as they enter on the shoe locker. "I don't know what is worse, restarting school or a new and annoying teacher."

Motoko smiled sympathetically at the younger girl, they change their shoes and move to their classes. Ranko sighed on her seat, Tomomi and Riko looks at the orange haired girl and they chat until the bell announces the start of the homeroom. Toshiko Himuro enters in the classroom.

"As you know you will be getting a new homeroom teacher for the rest of the semester." Toshiko said to them in a formal tone. "Don't give him trouble." She gestures to someone at the door to enter. Benji enters in the classroom wearing a black suit with a dark red shirt and a black tie.

"I am Tachibana." Benji said to the girls with a smile. "Benji Tachibana, I will be your new homeroom and English teacher, nice meeting you girls." "WHAAAATTT!!!!!!!!!!" Ranko screamed in disbelieve.

End of the chapter eleven:

Author explanation corner:

Eleven chapters, over 164 pages, more than 100.000 words, not adding the thirteen chapters in the main story, depending of how you look aren't much but at a different point of view are many. 6434 hits and 21 reviews, not adding the favorites, alerts and C2. What started as a minor story became my second most read story, second only to my main Ranma one, beating even my personal favorite fics that I wrote.

A very impressive mark, in my opinion. I want to thank everyone who is reading and supporting this story, not only who is reviewing but to everyone who is also silently supporting just by reading and leaving your mark in the hit count. Thank you all for the support.

This chapter closes the first phase of the story, with the end of the threat of the organization the violence will lessen (I really hope so, at least for a while) for a while, I want to focus more in interpersonal development, maybe introducing new characters or reintroducing old ones.

Now with tons of things to do and manage, as well mix, season and stir…well they aren't spices but the rescued girls will be eventually meeting the Hinata cast, there is the whole curse thing to deal with, wolf Benji is supposed to be recovering from wounds, eventually someone would question about him.

All that and more to come in the next chapters; and now to the first batch of explanations.

Affair with Tsuruko: In the main story when in Kyoto Benji met a woman named Kaede from a ninjitsu dojo. Since I thought that would be interesting making Benji knowing Tsuruko I decided to make Kaede from a ninjitsu dojo being a fake name that Tsuruko used to have an affair, the last thing that someone would do is use the real name specially someone from a family as traditional as Motoko's and Tsuruko's.

In the manga it is said that Tsuruko is happily married and we only see her husband a couple of times in flashbacks. However in here I decided to 'spoil' the marriage, it was all roses in the beginning, newlyweds' happiness, but after the passion vanishes is when the marriage suffers the first hit.

As said in the story living together shows you a lot from the other person, anyone who shared a room with someone else (brother, sister, whoever) knows how it is, you see things that normally no one sees from the other, the other way around is also truth.

And that isn't all that good at times, sure as any other male (and some females) I would be more than glad in seeing a woman as pretty as Tsuruko changing in front of me, but there is more than just seeing the other naked or in underwear in living together, there is the whole toothpaste issue, toilet seat, dirty clothes, and the list goes on.

There is also the different 'habits' that everyone have, I am sure that everyone here have one or more things that you do in your daily life that would or makes a house/room mate angry.

Tsuruko isn't the kind of woman who would let things slide or mistakes to happen more than few times (if that many), she would talk to her husband about what bothers her, him liking it or not, and let's admit there is things that we do that we don't want to change or that even stopping for a while we do it again later, that would lead to discussions and arguments (I am trusting that she wouldn't use her sword recklessly on him, she must have at least that little common sense).

Based in information gathered from magazines (I have two aunts, one mother, one grandmother, two cousins and one half sister, so there is plenty women's magazines lying around, specially in the bathroom, you tend to read them when you aren't in the mood for manga) it is a common mistake between married couples stopping to 'invest' on each other.

That means going that little extra far to surprise, please, show affection, look good for the partner, keeping the partner interested, after all they are past beyond the 'courting' phase, no more need to keep showing off. And based on studies that are wrong, I won't get in more details, but makes things fall in the routine and boredom, bad things to a marriage since makes the partner lose interest.

Adding to hurtful words, lack of interest in more than one 'area' of the marriage, the small annoying things that even by request aren't removed from the daily life, tends to break a marriage. Certain couples go see a therapist, others pretend that nothing happen (sometimes both sides go find lovers to find what they don't find in 'home', then they pretend that everything is fine), there are others possible things but I won't list all.

Anyway tired of how things was back home Tsuruko decided to get a lover, but that is dishonorable so she needed to hide her identity, a change to a set of clothes that she doesn't normally uses, different hairstyle, leaving the sword home (both Motoko and Tsuruko never are seen without the sword, even when it happens normally the sword is hidden in their clothes, don't ask me how), lastly making up a fake name (Tsuruko hates lie so no one thinks that she would lie).

Benji was lucky in meeting Tsuruko, more details will maybe told later in the story (and remember when Benji first visited Kyoto in the story he didn't knew that the Aoyama family existed there, so when he saw Tsuruko as Kaede he thought that was just a look alike, at least on this version of the story).

Tsuruko after the first time with Benji and his departure would then stop and think about what she has done. Let's not forget that she is married and sworn an oath to her husband (both religiously and by law), so she broke her word, lied to Benji and later her husband, and kept things in secret, so she wouldn't just go around and try finding a new lover.

She would feel guilty about doing that even after everything, she would be conscious of herself, not to mention that when you keep that kind of secret you tend to get quite jumpy and fear that everyone knows that you did and are judging you.

Tsuruko agreeing in becoming Benji's ally: Based on her past as a demon slayer (mentioned in the manga and anime but never show), her knowledge about the Shinmei-ryu, magic (her bird is a shikigami), and her prior relation with Benji, she would believe in his words based in the level of detail on them (of the workings of magic i.e: curse, and about the project girls). She knows that if he had second intentions he wouldn't give that many details (more were given 'off screen'), and he wouldn't say that he wouldn't use their relation on his advantage.

Ranko: I know that her scenes were quite short and mostly focused on Benji, but let's remember that she has that whole hitting issue left unresolved, is a serious issued and not the kind that you can easily forget about it.

Nagisa: She will be better explored in the next chapters, anyway I needed to make a good reason to Benji appear with a six years old girl with him in the beach, Haruka is already wary of Benji and Ranko so I knew that I have to make it good, so the idea of using what really happened to Nagisa as reason would make Haruka accept the whole thing.

Of course there is still plenty of stuff that she doesn't buy from them, but let's admit that even Haruka would let her maternal side surface when facing the fact that a little girl was raped by her father; and that would make her more open to accept her around.

And since I needed more 'uses' for Fuuka I decided to make her able to forge and create documents better and faster than Benji, she is bound to know more thanks to her background, she is currently doing the same with the other girls, I am still thinking in good excuses for Sachiko and Miki, explaining two 'natural' cat girls isn't exactly easy.

Sure if they were teens we could 'make' them be cosplayers who always keep the costume on (tails and ears), the color problem can be explained by a case of Daltonism or color blindness.

Yuzuhara elementary school: I made up the school since I have no knowledge of elementary schools in Japan; I mean names, address and things like that. To anyone who didn't connected the pieces yet it was Toshiko who indicated the school and pulled the strings for Benji, let's admit there is limits to what Benji can do to bureaucratically, also add the fact of Toshiko is more familiar with the school system than he is, what she wanted for setting the test and getting Nagisa on the school? Benji working for her until the other teacher comes back, as well few other small things to be named later (not hentai to those thinking that, not everything works that way).

………**Extras………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………**

Benji clamped his mouth with his hands as hard as he could; his shoulders shaking violently, tears squeeze themselves between his shut eyelids. Eri giggled, then started to chuckle until she couldn't hold it any longer and started to laugh. "Stop laughing!" Fuuka shouted at them.

"I can't take it anymore!" Benji screamed finally giving up and laughing hard at the sight, he falls on his knees and holds his chest. "This isn't funny!" Fuuka shouted. "This isn't funny at all!" "My diaphragm!" Benji exclaimed while laughing so hard that he was crying.

"Sorry Fuuka but is too funny!" Eri said laughing, she also couldn't stop. Fuuka's face get even redder with both shame and anger, she was wearing a stereotyped uniform for kindergarten teacher, it was a rather simple long sleeved pink top, a light red skirt that covers her legs until the middle of her shins, brown leather shoes and a simple green apron.

Of course to add to the image Eri tied Fuuka's short hair with two band making twin tails on her hair; it wasn't more than few inches long but added to everything just made the normally serious mage look even funnier in a cute way when compared to her usual choices of clothes.

"God I haven't laughed this hard in years." Benji said out of breath and sited on the floor. "I can't even remember the last time; I thought that I was going to die." "Same here." Eri replied panting and wiping her tears away, she didn't care that it ruined her make up, the laughter makes up for the trouble of fixing it.

In a rather childish way Fuuka puffs her cheeks angrily. Benji holds his tongue between his teeth to hold his laughter at the new development; Eri didn't even bother in holding and just laughed. Fuuka turns around embarrassed. "Now I got a new reason to keep you around." Benji commented standing up.

"Now I am a fool and not only a babysitter, source of magic items, sex toy, driver, scratching post…" Benji frowned and interrupts the listing. "Scratching post? I don't use you like that." "I do." Eri said. "But I don't mean as a cat sharpening the claws, but her skin is so nice to scratch and she reacts so cutely."

"In the end I am just a plaything." Fuuka sighed sadly. "Come on Fuuka it isn't like that." Benji said. "Excuse me? That coming from the guy to broke ten of my ribs, shattered my sternum, kept me prisoner, tortured me, made me kill everyone who I worked with…" Fuuka interrupted him.

"Who you told us that gang raped you for six weeks and called of anti-interrogation training drill." Eri pointed out. Benji nodded agreeing. "I can't deny that we started with the wrong foot." Benji said. "But we grew to like you, or you think that we tease you just for fun?"

"We do tease her for fun." Eri pointed out. "But yes she is cute and fun to tease because she is so serious all the time; you need to learn to relax more Fuuka. Sure we tease you a lot, but we do that because you are cute and get all skittish when embarrassed, you get even cuter like that. If we didn't like or cared about you, you think that we would give you as much freedom and liberties as we do?"

"And that is supposed to make me feel better?!" Fuuka exclaimed. "You are just angry because we made you wear a dress." Benji said with a grin, Fuuka was trying too hard pushing things on already solved issues. Benji knew that he hitted the sore spot because how Fuuka gasped and tensed.

"That is not it!" Fuuka exclaimed getting even redder. "Let's admit Fuuka, they suit you well." Benji said lightly poking Fuuka's hips with his index finger. "Not that you look bad with a suit, but you look more feminine like this, you should let yourself be more a woman than a soldier."

"Ugh…" Fuuka groaned as Benji keeps hitting the right spots. "Now while I love seeing Fuuka-chan squirming and blushing we have more pressing issues to deal with." Eri said clapping her hands. "I have to start studying to get back in college, and which college I am going to try for?"

"Up to you as long is in Tokyo." Benji replied. "But isn't kind of early to that?" "College entrances exams here are very hard and competitive." Eri answered. "And I am out of college for nineteen years, so I have a lot of catching up to do." Benji nodded understanding.

"Well Fuuka will watch the kids for a while, until they catch up with the studies and can get on real schools." Benji said. "I will deal with other problems." Fuuka sighed annoyed, isn't like that she didn't liked kids, she liked them as long she didn't had to take care of them, and now she have ten genetically engineered girls falling on her lap.

"But I will see if I can get more members to our group." Benji added. "I kind of like of the size of the pack right now." Eri commented, sure Fuuka wasn't a werewolf but as far Eri cared she was part of the pack too, and they just got ten cute cubs. "I don't mind either but we have to admit that we have lots of stuff to do and I am not always around." Benji said. "And we already overload Fuuka a lot."

With that Fuuka had to agree, sure she liked working and researching but the crazy hours were killing her, now with ten kids to watch would be even harder to meet Benji's expectations on the charms. "Anyway first I need to deal with certain things so I will find a nice and deserted mountain and stay there for a week or two." Benji added. "Eri is in charge, but Fuuka you are in charge of the kids, make sure that they eat right, sleep on time, bath and do all those stuff that kids are supposed to do."

"Hai." Fuuka answered not so pleased with her tasks, sure Benji lessened her workload to just making documents for the kids, watching the kids and working on magic charms, but she knew better than trusting that it would be less work for her, but in the bright side it wasn't her who would have to cram the hell up to get back in medical school.

"And Fuuka while I believe in corporal punishment in low level for kids when they misbehave, don't go overboard." Benji said seriously. "Few swats in the butt, or a handful of lashes with a belt in the butt or in the back of the thighs, there is a sizable different between disciplining and abuse. Don't cross it."

Fuuka nodded seriously, she could tell from Benji's expression that she wouldn't like of what she would get if she did, but she also knew the difference between disciplining and child abuse.

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"So how do I look?" Eri winked to Benji and posed with a smile. "You get a kick out of doing this to me don't you?" Benji asked while pinching the bridge of his nose. Eri chuckled while stretching her arms and legs, showing off her long, shapely and naturally tanned legs and puffing up her chest emphasizing her large breasts and cleavage barely and tightly contained by her small swimsuit.

"Come on master how do I look on it?" She pleased. "Really good." Benji answered, he wasn't lying, Eri was the kind of woman who could look good wearing anything, but she filled out the ice white one piece swimsuit that was made of what Benji guessed one long ribbon of fabric, and was styled that most of the fabric was covering the small of her back.

Then Benji recalled one sentence, one particular situation that fit that moment as a glove. "I really feel like blowing something up right now." Benji said, now he could understand what Fox Mulder felt on that particular episode of X-files that he couldn't recall the name.

"And why you are here?" Benji asked to Eri, he was in the beach where the Hinata beach tea house is located, well far from the tea house and the Hinata tenants and Nagisa. "Since you came to the beach I thought in enjoy a day off before start cramming." Eri answered with a smile. "So I left Fuuka alone with the kids."

'By the way that she spoke almost sounds like we are married and have children.' Benji thought idly, while slight annoyed at the surprise, he couldn't deny to Eri a last day of fun before starting catching up with her studies, besides she was too much of a nice view to be fully annoyed.

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Motoko walks to Ranko, who is looking at the beach from the inn veranda. "So how it feels now that everything is over?" Motoko asked when sure that they are alone there. "Not so sure Motoko." Ranko answered. "I know that I should be happy, but at the same time sad, but I only feel sad and confused."

"It is quite understandable in the circumstances." Motoko commented. "Benji said something like that too." Ranko replied. "I don't know what to think or do now Motoko, I mean compared to my old life, this life is almost like a paradise. I have real friends, not only on you but on Riko and Tomomi, I don't have crazy rivals trying to beat or kill me, and if I forget all about the hunt my biggest worry is how I will finish my summer homework. It is a totally different life from before, but I had to give up on certain things to stay like this."

"Give up on what?" Motoko asked. "I mean other than your family, friends and home." "My identity." Ranko answered. "My past self, my self before I met Benji, before he helped me, before I learned to think before acting, to consider other's feelings when I say something, my pride, my honor." 'My manhood…' Ranko added to herself.

"Pride and honor are important." Motoko commented. "I value that a lot too, but lately I wonder if they are as important as I think they are. I saw not even the tip of the iceberg of the hunt on you two, but looking back on those men who attacked the pension, the people that got killed in that night, what they did to innocent children, where is the honor? Where is the pride? Yes honor is important, look at Benji, some would call his methods dishonorable, but isn't he doing an honorable thing not only thinking on his and yours safety but in the safety of countless others who would suffer from the hunt? As much I hate to say and think on this, not everything is black and white, right or wrong, good or evil."

Motoko takes a deep breath. "This whole issue is confusing; I am torn between thinking if Benji is good or bad." Motoko said seriously. "He fooled god knows how many people, did all that, that what we saw him doing and more, but at the same time he saved people, punished bad people. Where is the line? Where is the clear division between right and wrong?"

"It is relative." Ranko said. "Benji once told me that right and wrong, hero and villain, it is all up the point of view, on his words, if you have a lettuce field that you and your family tend with loving care, then you find ants destroying the lettuces, you know that if you leave it alone you will lose the whole plantation, so you get a shovel or a can of poison and kill the ants, destroy the nest, you go back home pleased with yourself, in a way a hero that killed the horrible ants that would wreck your and your family's efforts, now let's look at the ants' side of the picture."

Ranko makes a small pause. "For them you are a monster, like Godzilla or any giant monster that we see wrecking Tokyo or whatever city in live action shows, you killed thousands, destroyed the city that they worked so hard to build, and wiped out their civilization without a clear motive." Ranko continued.

Motoko listens in silence and nod understanding. "I can see where you are getting at." Motoko said. "There is a bit more." Ranko replied. "I don't remember the name of the character or the anime, but she is a princess who is selfish, loves to fight, ill-mannered and with other features that we would see in a villain and is part of an alien race who is invading Earth, but when she meets a certain Japanese guy, falls in love for him and then start to fight to defend Earth from her own race where she is princess, just because that guy, you see she was still as much selfish, ill-mannered, and 'villain' build as before, and the two races are native from Earth, the 'alien' race is an older race who left Earth to explore the space and when they finally returned human race was there, in both sides believe that they are right and the other are the invaders, but since she is now fighting in the humanity side she is now in the 'right' side she is a hero right?"

Motoko thinks in silence about the mentioned scenario, and concluded as Ranko said, that nothing on the alien princess changed other than her alliances and she was as bad as she was before, the only difference is that she fights for the humans for her own selfish motives.

'A hero can use the same weapons than a villain and still be called hero?' Motoko thought. 'Just because she changed sides, she is now a hero? And who are right? The older race that left Earth to go to space or the mankind who evolved later and are still bound to Earth? Now I can clearly see what Ranko means, both sides think that they are right and the other are the invaders, the villains, so they have no reservations in using lethal force. So for Ranko and me Benji might be a hero, but for others he is just a murderer.'

"It is indeed a complex thing Ranko." Motoko finally said. "But you know, that is philosophy, I can understand what you mean with that example and words, it is hard to find honor when looking at things with that light, however even if Benji can use the same kind of 'tools' as the enemy, isn't the fact that he doesn't make him honorable?"

"What?" Ranko asked confused. "Let's put things on this light, Koi, let's pretend that is the leader of the organization since I don't know her name, Koi uses torture, blackmail, hostages and assassins to gain power." Motoko replied. "Benji can use the very same tools, and we both know that Benji used three of those four mentioned methods, he didn't use hostages, meaning, he didn't get an innocent someone who was important to someone in the organization and threatened that person to make the person in the organization do what he wants. By voluntary deciding to not use all the methods of a villain doesn't make him honorable in a way?"

"I guess that it does." Ranko commented. "I don't really have enough intelligence for that kind of complex line of thoughts." "You are pretty smart; you just don't work your brain as well as you do with your body." Motoko replied. "My last argument of this whole hero and villain subject is very simple."

"And it is?" Ranko asked looking at Motoko. "Nagisa." Motoko answered. "No villain would care about her well being, there are also others under his wing that we still don't know so that makes clear in which side he is, even when his methods make the line blurred."

"You do have a point there." Ranko commented. "I just wonder how things will be from now on. Not only about Benji and his actions, but what we will do with our lives. I don't know what I want to do." Motoko smiled to the other girl. "Well Ranko, at least now you have plenty of time to think about that carefully." Motoko said.

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Author explanation corner part 2:

Comment over Eri's swimsuit: Fox Mulder's line in the seventh season episode named First Person Shooter, since originally I saw that episode in Portuguese the sentence isn't the same that he says in the original English version, but an adaptation of the Portuguese one, 'Agora eu realmente sinto vontade de explodir alguma coisa.', the original English sentence is 'I am feeling the great need to blast the crap out of something.', I did remove the part that is focused to Scully since I am only using the second part of the sentence.

The essence is the same in both cases, raging testosterone. I got the original line by downloading the episode from the internet, but Benji in the story only knows the line in Portuguese, and don't recall the name of the episode.

Ranko's conversation with Motoko: Learning that nearly her entire family was killed, she has a cousin that was raped in the tender age of six, and that going back to the old way of life isn't advisable tends to have that effect on people, well we should also add the fact that the person who killed her entire family is someone who she deeply cares for.

So yes Ranko is very, very confused and disturbed with everything that is happening, who wouldn't be on her place, and let's recall that Benji is swinging between kill frenzy and peace seeking, and the struggle between animal instinct and human rationality, hard things to balance, so yes he is also affected by plenty of stuff too.

Back to Ranko, Motoko is the only one that can offer some advice to Ranko when not counting Benji, who is quite absent recently, but as we saw in the end of the main chapter is about to change, Ranko needs time to digest everything that is happening around her, talk to someone and unwind.

Motoko is the only person who she can trust a great deal of her problems, Riko and Tomomi are good friends but telling them everything so soon isn't wise and Ranko is smart enough to know that, no one in the pension is reliable enough with a secret other than Motoko, and lastly Ranko and Motoko's relation got much closer in the last chapters.

Motoko doesn't read comics, I am quite sure that she doesn't read manga, at least not the kind that girls of her age would (I am quite sure that she would have the entire collection of Lone Wolf and Cub in her room), so she isn't familiar with anti-heroes, Ranko also isn't familiar with them either, both are in their own ways too tied up with honor to fully understand everything, so the concept is quite foreign to them.


	12. Tachibana……sensei?

Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic. This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Love Hina I don't own or any of the characters of those shows. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed: Benji Himura.

This story begins in the Ranmaverse somewhere in the middle of the events of the chapter thirteen, actually between the release of Hinako and the events of the Gamble King events.

In the Love Hina timeline in the manga it stars after the chapter twenty six but before the chapter twenty seven.

This is a crossover so both stories casts or at least part of them will interact and there will be changes on both stories and on the plotline of Outcast Ranma. For anyone following the main story this scenario doesn't follow the same 'timeline' from the main story, it works on the line that timeline show on the story is the original one.

"Text" Talked sentences.

'Text' Thoughts.

-Text- Sounds effects.

(Text) Talked sentences in a foreign language as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

**Text**: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

_Text_: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

"_Text"_ Alteration in the voice, not in the tone but the voice itself.

Chapter twelve: Tachibana……sensei?

Benji enters in the classroom wearing a black suit with a dark red shirt and a black tie. "I am Tachibana." Benji said to the girls with a smile. "Benji Tachibana, I will be your new homeroom and English teacher, nice meeting you girls." "WHAAAATTT!!!!!!!!!!" Ranko screamed in disbelieve.

Benji chuckled inwardly at Ranko's shock. "I know that I will be here just for a short while but let's try getting along okay?" Benji asked to the girls with a smile, as he expected a cheerful chorus of "HAAAIIII!!!" was his answer. "Now you girls can ask him few questions but don't…" Toshiko's sentence is cut by a deafening torrent of questions from the girls.

Benji whistle loudly with two fingers on his mouth, effectively shushing the girls. "One at time." Benji said. "Raise your hand first, if acknowledged then you ask." Toshiko smiled, pleased in seeing Benji controlling the girls. "Okay Miyabe-kun you can ask the first question." Toshiko said pointing to a girl with long brown hair tied in a thick braid.

"Tachibana-sensei you have a girlfriend?" she asked excitedly. "I don't have a girlfriend." Benji answered. "I am married." Shocked Ranko falls from her seat while the other girls let out exclamations of surprised at Benji's words. Toshiko nodded pleased with Benji's answer.

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"You know the expression of utter shock in Motoko and Ranko's face almost make up to the fact that you are forcing me to work here." Benji commented to Toshiko. "I am not forcing you, I just made a proposal that you couldn't refuse." Toshiko replied. "Besides Yuzuhara elementary school doesn't normally takes students without recommendation and outside the regular enrollment period, you are lucky that the headmaster is an old friend of mine."

"I can't deny that." Benji said. "But you could get someone better to teach here you know, I don't have a clue of how to teach." "You will get the hang of it." Toshiko replied. "Besides I am quite sure that I am very accurate on my selection, now this is the last of the classes." "I am so not looking forward to work." Benji commented with a sigh, the idea of having to read and correct homework for four hundred and eighty students divided in three years with four classes each year wasn't appealing him at all.

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Benji casually reads a pocket sized manga while waiting on the lunch line of the school cafeteria, since he left much earlier than everyone else in the pension he didn't had a proper breakfast and he ran out of cereal bars after the third break, in other words Benji was really hungry. He ignores the chatter about him from the girls both ahead and behind him in the line, they clearly aren't used in seeing a teacher waiting in line for lunch.

After a short while Benji can get what he wanted, two meat breads, four cream breads, four pizza breads, three ham with cheese breads, one menu set D composed of a large bowl of Domburi with a side dish of lettuce salad, and lastly one apple. After paying for his food Benji takes the tray and walks to an empty table.

"I always knew that boys ate more than girls but isn't that a bit too much?" Toshiko asked to Benji, she is holding a tray with a plate of curry rice on it. "I am too old to be called 'boy' and you are too young to be calling me 'boy'." Benji replied while Toshiko sits facing Benji.

Toshiko chuckled at his comment. "Considering that all the other males in this school are over fifty, you are a boy." Toshiko commented. "And far more good looking too." Benji pulls a pocket knife from his jacket pocket and presses a button releasing the blade that locks in the open position.

Toshiko eyes the blade. "Now Tachibana-sensei that isn't the kind of knife that a teacher should own." She said seriously. "A folding automatic knife with a blade with a length above four inches." "This isn't a switchblade." Benji answered. "I opened with a small movement of my wrist."

"I didn't see it." Toshiko replied while Benji uses the knife to peel the apple. "It is quite minute now." Benji commented. "I trained a lot." "I advise you to make it more obvious from now." Toshiko said. "So until now what you think of your first day?" Benji sighed while his hands continue to create a single, thin and long ribbon of the peel.

"The idea of making class plans, teaching, correcting and testing almost five hundred girls isn't all that great." Benji answered. "The day is fine but I am not looking forward to teaching." "You will be teaching the easiest subject of the school." Toshiko replied. "All that you have to do is stick to the schedule and fill your class with conversation in English. And Shigure-sensei already agreed in correcting her share of the summer homework."

Benji rest the knife on the tray and holds the apple with his right hand after cutting it in two. "Benji!" Ranko exclaimed rushing at him. Benji shoves the apple on Ranko's open mouth preventing her from speaking. "Now be quiet and eat." Benji said to the orange haired girl.

Ranko holds and take a bite of the apple, quickly munching and swallowing it. "Why you are teaching here?!" Ranko asked seriously. "Ask to your principal/headmaster over there." Benji answered pointing to Toshiko with his knife while holding the other half of the apple with his left hand.

"I told you before the summer vacation that I wanted your brother to teach English here." Toshiko said to Ranko while Benji removes the seeds and cuts the half apple on his hand in two parts. "Since he asked me to find a good school to your cousin I asked him to teach here."

"But he doesn't have permission." Ranko protested. "I dealt with that already." Toshiko replied. "Now finish your apple." Ranko fumes while glaring at the principal. "Benji why you are here?" Motoko asked to Benji while she holds a tray with her lunch. "Toshiko made me teach here." Benji answered. Toshiko nodded confirming while Benji gesture to Motoko sit with them.

"Apple?" Benji offered to Motoko one of the pieces stabbed in the tip of his knife. "Thank you." Motoko said accepting the fruit. Ranko sighed and moves to the lunch line, less than six months earlier she was Benji's classmate, now she is his student.

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"Benji you are going back now?" Ranko asked after getting permission to enter on the teacher's lounge, finding Benji was quite easy, even with all the teachers sited Benji was taller. "Sorry but the other teachers are dragging me to a welcoming party." Benji said not really excited at the idea.

"You are making it sound like a bad thing." Sayuri the school nurse commented teasingly. "Don't worry Tachibana-chan we will take good care of your brother." Ranko nodded and excused herself from the room, if Benji wasn't going to the pension, she should move to catch the next train.

Benji pulls his phone from his pocket, and then he remembers that Shinobu doesn't own a cell phone, with a sigh Benji pockets his phone and writes a note in a small piece of paper. "What is that?" Sayuri asked curious. "Just a note for myself." Benji answered. "I asked to one of girls that live in the pension to pick up my cousin, I was going to call her but she doesn't have a cell phone."

Sayuri nodded understanding, Benji looks at the other teachers who are busy with their own business and getting ready to call it a day, on the meantime Benji calls the pension and learns that Shinobu did picked up Nagisa in the school.

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Ranko sighed for the umpteenth time since she left school. "You are starting to bother me." Motoko said to the shorter girl. "Benji is going to be a teacher in our school, why you are sighing that much anyway?" "Benji said that he was married." Ranko answered. "I never heard of anything like that."

"Hello?" Motoko called teasingly. "It is a lie." "Why Benji would lie about that?" Ranko asked not really pleased with the tease. "Ranko we go to an all-girls school." Motoko replied. "Before Benji all the teachers are over fifty and let's admit not attractive, Benji with twenty five years old and handsome would be showered with love letters, homemade lunch boxes, confessions and presents from the girls if he said that was single."

Ranko frowned she couldn't really understand Motoko's logic. "It means that by telling to the students that he is married, Benji won't have a hard time dealing with lovesick students." Motoko explained in an even simpler way. "Thought I am betting that even with that excuse Benji will get many love letters; many of our colleagues read those stupid shojo manga and live in the fantasy that their love will be reciprocated even in impossible scenarios."

"I do agree that shojo manga is silly." Ranko commented. "And that putting in that way it makes sense that Benji lied about being married. Still I would like to be warned about that before the first day of the new period." Motoko agreed with Ranko on that, it would be nice to know that, but from what she noticed from Benji's expressions, the shock that they had was the only highlight of his day.

"And Ranko in the bright side you got a nice homeroom teacher." Motoko commented. "Benji is quite reliable, look at my class; we have Misato-sensei as homeroom teacher." "You are right, I feel sorry for you girls." Ranko said with a smile. "And you are still a sophomore, so you have another year and a half with her right?"

Motoko nodded confirming. "But she isn't really a bad teacher; she is just too much of an airhead." Motoko commented. "Easily distracted, klutz and forgetful."

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Benji frowns after being sprayed with a mix of beer and saliva from Misato Kisaragi, the school's history teacher when she sneezed with a mouthful of beer. With a handkerchief Benji wipes his face. 'I knew that sooner or later something like this would happen to me.' Benji thought with a dry sigh. 'Being sprayed with liquid that someone else was drinking isn't as fun to receive as it is to watch.'

"Sorry!" Misato exclaimed embarrassed. "I am really, really sorry." "Never mind it." Benji said with a smile. "I will go wash my face." "Don't take too long Tachibana!" Ryoichi Sasaki, the school's math teacher exclaimed as Benji moves to the restroom, Sasaki was one of the three male teachers of the school not counting Benji, he was happy that a new male was around.

After a couple of hours using several excuses to not to drink Benji leaves the bar, the others follow the action since it was a school night. "I am here." Benji called when entering on the house that was the cover entrance of the base. "Please tell me that you have brought anything to calm them." Fuuka said rushing to the entry. "It is way past nine and I still can't make them sit to eat."

"I thought that they aren't giving much trouble." Benji replied loosening his tie. "I can't make them eat vegetables." 'You know that is so familiar that isn't even funny.' Benji thought with a lightly bitter smile. "You have fixed dinner to them yet?" Fuuka denied with a nod. "I don't know what to make right now, they say that they are tired of white rice, miso, fish and salad."

"It can get a bit tiresome eating the same thing every meal." Benji commented. "Did you make sure that they took baths?" "Done that two hours ago." Fuuka answered. "Well put some anime for them to watch, and then you go soak for a while." Benji said to the worn out mage. "I deal with dinner."

Fuuka didn't contested, if he wanted to do it then she would do it, she really needed a long and relaxing soak. Benji moves to the kitchen, throwing his jacket and tie over a chair. 'Well let's see if I can make that.' Benji thought while checking something on Fuuka's computer. 'If worked for me will work for them, I so love internet, now is just find that recipe.'

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Benji smiled pleased while placing two cake pans in the over, one large rectangular tray and a small circular one. "This will do it." Benji said while closing the oven's door, he was using an old strategy that his mother used on him and his brother in their now distant childhood days.

Placing thinly chopped vegetables inside a Brazilian pastry with chicken, corn and other ingredients in the filling with plenty spices, but unlike his mother Benji wouldn't tell to the girls after they ate everything that inside the filled have every single piece of vegetable that they hate.

Benji stretches and let out a sigh, it would take half an hour for the pastries be done, he would leave the dirty pots for Fuuka to wash, it was only two anyway, moving to the living room Benji find the girls watching TV, but as soon they notice him they all pounce on him.

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Ranko sighed while she looks at her watch for the umpteenth time on that hour. "But Benji is sure late." Ranko muttered annoyed, for a change Ranko felt like cooking something, actually more of an attempt of smoothen Benji with food before questioning him thoroughly.

"How long you are gone make us wait?" Naru asked annoyed, the dinner was over one hour late than usual. Ranko gets a plate and moves to the dining table. "Just let me put some of the food aside for Benji and then we can eat." "If he isn't here to have dinner then he doesn't want any!" Kitsune exclaimed, Ranko's food looked delicious so if Benji doesn't get his share means more for her.

"Unlike you I am considerate." Ranko said sternly while putting some croquettes in the plate. "It isn't Benji's fault that he got caught up in some 'welcoming party' that the other teachers decided to throw for him, and if he wasn't going to eat Benji would call letting us know."

"Don't be such a glutton." Motoko said to Kitsune. "You think that your sedentary lifestyle would burn the calories of this meal? Your party time jobs can hardly deal with your normal intake." "Ugh…" Kitsune grunted at the attack over her figure. "And if you were the one who was late for dinner you would like if we allowed Kaolla to eat your share?" Motoko added.

Kitsune remained in silence not want to vocalize that Motoko was right. "Okay you guys can start now." Ranko said before moving to the kitchen. "Itadakimasu!" All the inhabitants other than Motoko exclaimed before starting to eat. After placing the place inside the microwave Ranko takes her seat and half heartily starts to eat.

After the dinner Ranko is waiting on the living area, Shinobu is doing the dishes, Keitaro and Naru are studying, Nagisa was idly reading in a near sofa stifling a yawn now and them, Ranko didn't had the heart to send the girl to bed, Nagisa was dying to tell to Benji about her first day in school.

"You know Ranko you almost look like a worried wife." Motoko commented half teasingly half seriously. "Don't make fun of me Motoko." Ranko said embarrassed, thankful that no one heard it, Nagisa was distracted, Kitsune was in her room and Kaolla was somewhere in the pension.

"It isn't entirely a joke." Motoko said sitting next Ranko. "You are like that since you arrived from school." Ranko sighed. "I am just worried about Benji." Ranko said. "I mean what kind of trouble it could be stirred by the fact that Benji is teaching in our school? What kind of favors the principal will ask him?"

"I am sure that she won't ask for unreasonable things." Motoko replied. "And didn't the principal say that she took care of the situation? Himuro-sensei is a reliable woman, she wouldn't lie about that." "But how could she do that Motoko?" Ranko asked seriously. "Benji doesn't have a license, I am not even sure if he is a good teacher."

"I think that he is good teacher." Motoko commented. "Sure that I haven't learned more than some fighting principles and few moves, his teaching style can be a bit rough but other than that I don't see much of a problem. And in the upside at least now you can see Benji more often, we might even be able to get a ride with him once and a while."

The ride idea didn't sound all that bad; it would sure help in the days that she has class duties, but Ranko was also worried about something else. Benji is a cursed werewolf, with enhanced senses, she had noticed in the past how Benji reacted to female hormones when exposed to large quantities of them for a long period of time without any source of release.

Going to a school where the population is around ninety nine percent female would expose him to a massive dose of hormones from over four hundred females for at the very least six hours for six days a week, not adding living in the Hinata-sou where the female population was of eighty two percent, Ranko knew that isn't easy for Benji.

But another of her reasons is that she knows that as a teacher in her school Benji would have access to her grades before she did and she wouldn't be able to lie about them for him when she get bad scores, it was hard enough to keep her scores over the red mark, with Benji there she would have to work even harder to make them higher since he is always telling her that education was important.

But Ranko can't see much of a reason to study, why she would bother to learn about some guys that died way before she was even born, or learn what happens when you mix two chemicals, she didn't see use for Japanese literature either, at least those old poems and stuff that made little to no sense for her, she was beginning to see the uses of basic math, even some slight advanced math, English, now that was one that she saw a good reason for.

Home economics and physical education was also on her list of acceptable subjects, even art and music in a lesser way, it was good to develop hobbies but everything else she felt that was plainly useless. "You know Motoko I don't know why bother in learning some stuff." Ranko commented. "What use we would have for some ancient haiku poems now days?"

Motoko normally would make a strong point about Japanese literature being important, but she couldn't help in partly agree that was a bit unnecessary. "Ranko you know why the samurai of the past studded calligraphy, tea ceremony, ikebana, and several other seemingly useless skills for a warrior?" Motoko asked seriously.

"Not really, I mean I think that I heard Benji saying something like that but I can't remember." Ranko answered. "Well then let me refresh your memory." Motoko said. "A true warrior knows the worth of those skills, because normally the chaos of battle last for a short while, and periods of peace last for a long time, having only skills for war would make them useless outside the battlefield, and those skills not related to combat also provide them with relaxation during the stressful war periods, taking their minds from the conflict even for a short while."

Motoko makes a small pause to let her words sink in. "Look at Benji, if only had skills for a warrior would the two of you be here today?" Motoko asked. "No." Ranko answered.

"Exactly." Motoko said. "It was his other skills, the ones not related to fighting that allowed you two to live here, and now that there isn't a need to fight Benji is using those skills to make a living, having those skills help him to do more outside combat and they are also helpful during them, at least some of the skills. Is the same with poetry, it is just something else to learn, keep your mind busy with, to allow you to focus on something else, exercise your imagination."

Ranko scratches her chin, the explanation was okay explained why knowing certain things, but still didn't made knowing those poems useful. "Ranko I know that not everything that we learn will be useful in our lives." Motoko added. "But who knows what will or will not be useful for us? Who know what kind of subject would attract us and make us decide on a particular career? And by studying our past it helps us to improve our future, learning from the actions of others."

"I am back." Benji's voice came from the entrance. "Benji!" Nagisa exclaimed cheerfully throwing her book on the sofa and running to the entry. Motoko and Ranko can hear the tackle of the little girl's body impacting against Benji's. "Nice tackle." Benji commented afterwards.

"Welcome back." Motoko and Ranko said moving to the entry. "You look a bit down." Motoko commented. "Your first day was too tiresome?" "A little bit." Benji replied picking Nagisa up, the two girls notice that Benji's jacket is folded over his right arm, his tie is loose and the top two buttons of his shirt are opened.

Motoko smiled a bit at the scene, it was almost like Benji was family man returning from a hard day at work, she had to admit that Nagisa fit the role of daughter quite well. "So how was your first day in school?" Benji asked to the little girl. "Had fun?" "Yes!" Nagisa answered excited.

Benji smiled. "Well you can tell me all about it in a little while." Benji said putting her down. "Now go get changed and go to your room, it is way past your bed time." "Hai!" Nagisa exclaimed running to her room. "You don't look all that hot." Ranko commented. "The party wasn't fun?"

"I just had a long day." Benji answered while taking out his shoes and placing them on the locker in the entry. "The party was okay, it was annoying to keep refusing beer and sake all the time. I don't get why most people that having fun in a party is the same than drinking all the liquor that they can."

Motoko smiled sympathetically. "I saved you some dinner." Ranko said to Benji. "If you want I can warm it for you." "Thank you." Benji replied. "But you don't need to warm it; if you two want I brought something too." Motoko looks curious at the plastic bag that Benji is showing to them.

"What is that?" Ranko asked curious. "Just a something that I made earlier." Benji answered. "Before coming here I had to check on the others, since the person who takes care of them was tired I made them some dinner, but I made more than enough for everyone there. Besides this one has a different filling too." "Now I am getting curious." Motoko commented. "I am not all that hungry but I feel like tasting it." "Me too." Ranko agreed.

"This is quite good." Motoko said resting her fork on her plate. "Yeah it is great." Ranko agreed with her mouth filled with the pastry. "But you don't seem to be enjoying it." Motoko commented. "Well I am just a bit homesick." Benji replied idly moving around a piece of the pastry, turning the frangible crust into small crumbs. "This might be just a cheap imitation but my mother used to make something similar to this when I was a kid."

Motoko and Ranko remained in silence. "I knew that taking care of ten kids wouldn't be easy." Benji commented. "That there would be problems in making them eat, go to bed and do all the other stuff, while I am not there all the time I still help, when she told me that she was getting trouble to make the girls eat their vegetables I recalled of this trick that my mother would to play on me."

The two girls remained in silence; they can feel that Benji wasn't done yet. "She would make empadão; it is a kind of pie." Benji continued. "I would eat and even repeat and then later she would ask if I liked, I would say yes, and then just for the pleasure of doing so she would tell me that in the filling was several types of vegetables that I hate to eat, that I totally despise, I would get mad and she would laugh her ass off making me even angrier, and she would laugh even more and harder, which fed my anger, even after I grew she would once and a while rub in my face that story, that she did it all the time and every time I fell for it, what could I do, I was just a young boy and young kids don't have a really good memory, they can't recall everything that happens around them."

Benji sighed. "Anyway, when I made this I wasn't feeling sad or angry about it, just later when I was done that it finally sank it." Benji said in a tired voice. "It still makes me mad about my mother tricking me like that, and what I hate most is the fact that she took pleasure in angering me and had fun doing so, it was too hard to just keep her mouth shut about it? Yet here I am using the very same trick."

"So you told the girls that you filled this pie with vegetables?" Ranko asked confused. "Hell no!" Benji exclaimed. "As far they know and depending of me they will only learn about this years from now. By then they will understand and just laugh it off, and not keep with this bitter feeling like I do."

"I can understand that you want to keep this a secret from them so they can eat vegetables." Motoko commented. "But didn't experiencing that given you a nice childhood memory?" "Childhood memory yes, nice no." Benji replied. "Trust me Motoko there is several pieces of childhood memories that I have that I would love to erase from my and my family's minds. What for them is just funny to recall now but for me is painful and embarrassing, and they don't care."

Motoko could understand his feelings, she also had a couple of those memories, they aren't harmful but are still painful and embarrassing to recall and that no matter how much you want to forget everyone still remembers about it and have fun recalling it, but she also knew that Benji knew that for his family as happened with hers those are priceless memories of their childhoods that will never return.

"If that memory is that bad why you are homesick?" Ranko asked, Motoko sighed inwardly at the lack of tact of the other girl, even being a bad memory it recalled Benji of his family, and from Benji's expression there is a huge gap between him and them, the kind that can't be breached with any means.

"I just got." Benji answered, Benji makes himself to finish the pastry and the dinner, he still have to pay attention to Nagisa. "You haven't really explained why you started teaching in our school and why you lied about being married." Ranko said changing the subject.

"Toshiko was quite resolute about me teaching there as part of the deal of getting Nagisa on Yuzuhara elementary school." Benji answered. "The lie about being married is to lessen the harassment of the students, and that should keep more than a handful of them away from me, it is bad enough that I have to teach, I don't have time to deal with lovesick students."

A smile traced Motoko's lips at Benji's words. "Fine you won the parfait." Ranko muttered to Motoko. "You really nailed that one in the head." Benji chuckled at the exchange; he guessed that Motoko would see through his lie quite easily.

"For sake of appearances you two back up the story, I already arranged a ring to use as wedding band, one of my female friends will pose as the wife in a couple of pictures." Benji said to them. "I am sure that tomorrow more than one girl will ask for evidence of my 'wife'."

Motoko and Ranko nodded agreeing. "And if asked you two tell that she lived in Yokohama with her parents while I am looking for a place for us here." Benji continued. "See Ranko was a good think that you haven't said anything to anyone." Motoko said to the orange haired girl. "If you told to your classmates that was a lie they would be bothering Benji a lot."

Ranko nodded understanding. "And what I say if they ask if I know her?" Ranko asked to Benji. Benji taps his chin while thinking about the answer, he didn't had much time to go through all the details so he didn't had an answer ready for that. "Well just say that you don't get along with her and wished that I haven't married her." Benji answered. "I am sure that saying that they won't bother you with more questions about her."

Ranko nodded understanding, it was simple enough and close enough of the truth, she didn't liked of the idea of someone claiming to be Benji's wife even if was just an excuse to keep girls away from him.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Is there anyone in there?" Benji asked knocking on the changing room's door, not getting a answer he enters and repeats the operation on the door of the hot spring, twice, now sure that no one is in there Benji hangs the sign on the changing room door that indicates that either him or Ranko are using the bath, well originally Ranko and his wolf self but still works.

To avoid problems the sign is on the door above the reach of Sara and have several bells on it, so when opening the door they would make noise indicating to a distracted tenant that the bath is being used. Benji was quite confident that he wouldn't be bothered, normally he wasn't, and also normally no one bath that late, throwing his clothes in a basket Benji grabs a towel and moves to the bathing area.

He really missed a good, strong and powerful stream of warm water coming from a tank less gas water heater, as the shower of his grandparent's apartment where he grew, the pressure of the water was high and without turning on the cold faucet the water was almost hot enough to boil.

With an annoyed sigh Benji washes himself in the cold shower, he had to literally bolt in the wall a pair of clips to hold the shower head in the height that he uses, so he wouldn't have to hold the damn thing, making easier for him to wash himself. As western man Benji preferred to wash himself when standing and not sited as the vast majority of the Japanese.

After rinsing away the soap and later the shampoo Benji turns the water off and walks to the large pool, he sighs in a mixture of pleasure and tiredness, he was finally able to just relax after the long day, first he had to wake at five and half in the morning to arrive in the school at six for a tour in the school to learn the locations of everything, after that introducing himself and dealing with six classrooms filled with teenager girls, worrying about Nagisa for most of the day, then dealing with the teachers, after that giving Fuuka a worth break and making dinner for the girls, dealing with the girls for one hour, then walking all the way to the pension since he wasn't in the mood for riding his bike, then speaking with Ranko and Motoko, and lastly hearing Nagisa cheerfully telling him her first day in school.

"You know my life was easier when I was being hunt." Benji muttered in Portuguese, the worse part is that it was true; he didn't have half of the responsibilities that he now has. "And I was thinking that my life would get easier after killing Nodoka and the others…"

Sighing again Benji said. "What did I ever do to deserve this?" Benji looks at the sky, then around as he recalls what is just on the top of his mind. "You know what don't answer that." He finally said. "I need to find some new pack members; at least with one or two more it will greatly relieve the stress on me. Maybe I should have kept Nagisa out of the school until the end of the year."

"No, I did the right thing." Benji said throwing some water on his face. "She is happy, and her smile is worth, thought it wouldn't be bad have more free time to move around and meet new people. And as soon Fuuka is done teaching the girls the basic then we can enroll them in the elementary school too and things will be easier too."

"Man…I am not even married why suddenly I have twelve daughters who aren't even mine dropping on my lap? I am just twenty five years old, I am too young to have eleven daughters under ten years old and one on her mid teens." Benji muttered looking at the sky. "Maybe I should get a wife for real, at least then I would have someone to share my troubles with."

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"Do you understand anything that he is saying?" Kitsune asked to Ranko, she as well Motoko, Sara, Kaolla and Keitaro are spying on Benji from Keitaro's bath. "No, that isn't English and for sure isn't Japanese." Ranko answered. "But we should stop, Benji will notice us if we stay here too long." 'Long enough to the wind change and carry our scents to him.' Ranko added to herself.

"It is bad enough that we are violating his privacy like this." Motoko said. "You say that but still are here." Kitsune teased the swordswoman. Motoko blushed embarrassed. "I am here to prevent you from doing anything worse than this." Motoko replied not sounding very convincing.

"I agree with Ranko-chan and Motoko-chan." Keitaro said. "We should leave now and stop this, didn't he already had a harsh day today without adding us invading his privacy like this?" "Come on we can't even see him well from this position." Kitsune replied. "And we can't understand one word of what he is saying."

"But those are things that he is speaking to himself." Keitaro protested. "You wouldn't like if we peeked on you when you do something like that would you?" "Urashima is right." Motoko agreed. "As odd that is coming from him, we should leave, and Kitsune if needed Ranko and I will use of force to achieve that." Kitsune clicked her tongue and leads them out.

"Kitsune it is that hard for you to not intrude in other people's business?" Keitaro asked to the eternal fox as they walk to their rooms. "I am not saying this in fully disapproval even thought it is some there, if you focused half of the energy that you focus on meddling in other people's lives in studying or working you would have a good life, get good grades and eventually getting a well paying job."

"I don't want a boring life like that." Kitsune replied. "I don't want to wait I don't know how long to get money, and I don't want to work ten to twelve hours a day six to seven days a week for god knows how many months to have a average life, I want a easy and good life now, enjoy my life and not waste it studying and working."

"You want a good life but you do nothing to achieve it." Keitaro said seriously. "How much money you wasted in gambling and in liquor, don't forget to add the money borrowed from others and stole from others as you did to me, and how much money you won from gambling?"

Kitsune gasped as Keitaro's words, she did expended large amounts of money betting and drinking, she still has large debts all over Hinata, she didn't know exactly how much she had expend on gambling but was over half million dollars that adding the debts that she have, and that wasn't counting the ones of liquor.

"And Kitsune you think that we like you meddling in our lives?" Keitaro added. "While I was happy in see that you gals worried about me and searched us in Kyoto, I was angry because Motoko-chan later told me that you used that as an excuse to do a food touring, wasting the money that I worked hard to save so you could have some fun. Ranko-chan told me about that day that Seta-san came visit and all that you did, part of me appreciate the effort, but couldn't you just let things follow their natural courses? You had to meddle and use us as entertainment?"

"I was trying to help." Kitsune defended herself. "And how much parts of wanting to help were added to use them as amusement source?" Keitaro asked. "One part of want to help to nine of using them as amusement." Kitsune answered in a defeated tone. "See, and all the efforts were futile." Keitaro replied. "A couple weeks later Narusegawa and Seta-san met again. Sure I went overboard and declared Narusegawa's feelings to Seta-san, but unlike you I really wanted to help them to develop a relation, there wasn't anything else behind it."

"And what you say about Benji and Ranko?" Kitsune asked. "Just look how things changed since they came, you won't tell them to not meddle in other's business?" Keitaro scratches his head. "Did they meddle in something before you tried to do something?" Keitaro asked. "Or did it just for fun, to see me or someone else sweat? Or they did to help me or someone else?"

Kitsune knew the answer, the two siblings only acted after she started something and always turning things better, by talking some sense to Motoko the damage to the pension was greatly reduced, when dealing with Keitaro Benji gave to the bespectacled man some confidence and caused a even larger reduction of the damage to the building and Keitaro, other than trying to help the two siblings pretty much kept to themselves, they did interacted and have fun with everyone else, but they never intruded in their business.

"Ranko-chan is studying, well not studying hard in a mad frenzy as Narusegawa or me, but she is studying hard in her own way, she even asks for Narusegawa or Motoko-chan's help." Keitaro said. "She also helps on making dinner every now and then, Benji was unemployed for a while but now he is working, and before that he paid the rent in advance for one year for both him and his sister. Now he has even more responsibilities by having to also raise his cousin mostly by himself."

Kitsune frowned. "Wait a minute there Keitaro." She said seriously. "If he was unemployed how he got that much money to pay two years worth of rent?" "Before he moved here because Ranko-chan's neko-ken incident he was working." Keitaro answered. "And he had some savings that he could use. I also asked him that, he was unemployed for a couple of months since he quitted his former job."

"And you just accepted that?" Kitsune asked. "What if he didn't found a job?" "He had already paid one year of rent for two rooms." Keitaro answered. "So until he had to pay the rent again I wouldn't bother if he found or not a job. It isn't my business." Kitsune sighed.

"Not everyone is like him." She said annoyed. "I don't want to work my ass out to get paid a flimsy salary in the end of the month and after half a century get an even smaller pension." "Well I hate to break this for you Kitsune." Keitaro said seriously. "But I really doubt that right now you would be an acceptable bride for a rich bachelor, sure you are an attractive woman, but your habits are too much for your appearance to make up for."

Kitsune is stunned with his words; she would never expect Keitaro to say something like that to her, perhaps think, but never voice it. She knew that Keitaro was right, she have a reputation in the bars of Hinata, she could always find a cot ready for her in any bar if she drank too much, there is also the rumors about her being used when passed out drunk, or selling herself for a bottle. She would never find a rich guy who would marry her if he knows that, getting pregnant to force a marriage or getting a pension was also hard and wasn't something that she wanted to do.

End of the chapter twelve:

Author explanation corner:

School day: Based in what I gathered from manga, anime, live action series and few other sources I realized that I don't know much about the details of a school day in Japan. So here is the day based in what I know and think:

Six periods of one hour each, plus half an hour of homeroom in the morning and another half in the afternoon before the end of the classes, half an hour of lunch between four periods in the morning and two of the afternoon, one break of five minutes between each period, the classes start at seven thirty in the morning, lunch at half past noon until one in the afternoon, the classes end at three and a half in the afternoon, from where the student can go to a after school club or go home.

At least that is how I arranged based in what I know, if is different let me know and I will fix it.

Classes: Once again based in what I know, three years of high school, then add a number of classes at least two, but based in anime and manga where we often see four is not more I decided to set on four classes for each year. Based both in anime and internet research the classrooms have an average of forty students each, so twelve classrooms between the three years multiplied by forty students equals four hundred and eighty.

Once again this is all guessing; in a regular big city school of Japan there could be more than four classes on each year increasing the total number of students.

Students: Based in Love Hina manga and anime Motoko goes to an all girls' school. When looking back in the anime the trio of girls that followed Motoko around in the beginning and until the beach episode; culminating on the possession of the most passionate girl by a ghost. That added to her initial opinion regarding males is a natural assumption, and I think that it is told somewhere in the manga or anime that she goes to an all girls school, but I can't recall where.

Since it is an all girls' school it isn't surprising to have a big fuzz when Benji is introduce as substitute teacher there and that prior to him all the other male workers teachers or not are above a certain age and also considered unattractive for teenager girls, at least the bulk of them.

I don't plan on developing all the students, I will most likely have something as the initial Negima manga focusing a small group of students and slowly if needed adding few more (remember that in the first issues of the manga Negi hardly got along with ten of the thirty and some girls of the 2-A, and he got along better with Azuna and Konoka since he shares a room with them).

And while not show in Negima I am quite sure that Negi also teaches English to the other classes of the Jr. high school, but the manga and anime only show him teaching the 2-A, and doesn't show many students outside it, that will be the base of some of the school events focusing more in Motoko's class and Ranko's class, and some after school incidents (clubs wanting Benji to be the supervising teacher and things like that).

Once again based in anime (let's not forget that in the most technically sense it is an anime world, and it fused Love Hina and Ranma's worlds, well add a dash or two or Negima) the bulk of the girls are the 'stereotype standard' girl who reads shojo manga, loves shopping, believe in impossible love stories, wait for her 'prince', and the list goes on.

So they are easily affected and attracted by 'unique' figures as Motoko (slightly boyish strong willed girl), Ranko (downright tomboy strong willed girl, remember they have no idea that she is originally a boy), Benji (handsome bellow thirty male, no need for anything else), for more details watch shojo anime as Maria-sama ga miteru, or something like that with tons of girls or something else in the purest shojo style (nothing against shojo manga, I red some, I like few CLAMP stories but that one overloaded my limits).

Once again I won't develop all the characters of the school, some of them might be developed, and if I find the name of the girls that follow Motoko around I plan on using them too.

Lunch: Another area that I have no idea of, at least in Japanese schools, back when I studied in a boarding school, the teachers and the students used the same line in the cafeteria and ate the same food, there wasn't a separate table just for the teachers they sited in any available table and more than once I ate in the same table as one or more of the teachers (even I being not a model student, I was just friendly with everyone teachers included), I don't know if it is like that in Japan.

I do know that is common for students and teachers take lunch boxes (the so famous bento), and that there is also students that eat in the school cafeteria if there is one there, since Benji didn't had time to make a lunch box (or just wasn't in the mood to make one), didn't bought one before moving to the school he decided to eat in the cafeteria.

The apple thing on Ranko was just something that popped in my mind and I thought that would be funny, even thought it didn't came out as funny as I thought (and the best way to shut her up is with food, so there is the apple).

Empadão: As explained it is of the family of pies, I can't find a similar name in English and the closest thing that I got in my dictionary was pastry, it is a common food here in Brazil, thought not the kind that you eat everyday, a smaller version called empadinha, is much more common and is sold in nearly every bar and bakery in Brazil, there is countless types of fillings that change with the area, but the most common is the chicken, made with boiled chicken breast separated from the bone and unraveled (the closer of the meaning of the Portuguese word anyway), seasoned with spices and other stuff.

As said in the story the main trick used by my mother to make me eat a handful of vegetables that even today I hate, and I also get mad when recalling it (and yes she did all that I said that she did in the story), but still a good way to make children eat vegetables without knowing it since the filling is spicy and tasty, covering the taste of the vegetables (cabbage and few other mild tasting vegetables).

Even genetically engineered the girls are still children so let's admit that having them to hate a handful of vegetables and not wanting to eat them is reasonable, and let's assume that they were only fed with some kind of concentrate food, bland and tasteless that only gave the needed amount of calories, so now in a brand new world of tasteful food and drinks they would find their likes and dislikes.

And that would be another stone in Fuuka's bumpy path and would tire her even more (ten kids are a handful even when normal, ten genetically engineered kids six times 'better' are only worse), so the poor woman needed a deserved break even a small break.

Eri is buried under hundreds of books catching up with her studies, so she can't help all the time, seven hours of sleep, a total of three hours for meals and resting after eating, twelve hours studying and the last two hours for short breaks thought the day adding toilet and bathing breaks.

Motoko teasing Ranko: I know a bit unusual for her but not in this story, and let's admit that Ranko was looking like a worried wife waiting for her late husband at that scene.

Discussion over school subjects: Just some opinions over the subjects of the school based in what I show in anime, manga and movies, they are just fictitious arguments and don't have any weight.

Bath scene: In the Love Hina anime and manga there was always a free fanservice scene in the bath, well there is one here, okay just kidding. After a day like that a long soak would be more than welcomed, I added some random thoughts about the turns of events, a questioning over pairings (which I haven't decided to anyone), just plain complaints.

Spying on Benji: Kitsune wanted to have fun and if possible blackmail material on Benji, it was also a good chance to show some development on Keitaro (after all the changes in the story of Love Hina he had to be different too), Ranko was curious and worried since Benji doesn't tell her much about his plans, much less his problems, Motoko also wanted to know more about what is happening, as well using a good excuse to see Benji naked or near naked, Keitaro was there to stop Kitsune without much success, Kaolla was there just for plain fun.

………**Extras………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………**

Before the first day of the new period

Benji looked at his image in the mirror and sighed. "Why the long face?" Eri asked to Benji. "You look good in that suit." Fuuka nodded agreeing. "But the tie isn't right." Fuuka said walking towards Benji and adjusting his tie. Fuuka frowns at her inability to tie it when facing him.

She moves and presses her body against his back, now she can easily tie it with practiced ease. "It is kind of hard because you are too tall." Fuuka commented looking at the reflection on the mirror, her head poking at his left side. "You don't seem to be having trouble." Eri commented.

"I am used on tying ties." Fuuka replied while adjusting the pressure. "But I never did when facing someone; it was always my tie that I saw in the mirror." "I actually knew how to tie it." Benji commented. "But since I hardly used a suit or even owned a tie I forgot how to do it."

"Well you should learn it again." Fuuka said moving back to face him and making sure that the tie is straight. "You never know when you have to wear one again, and I might not be available."

Benji nodded, while not liking to wear ties he also knew that he had to wear them in certain occasions. "But what surprised me is the fact that you own suits." Fuuka commented. "I do know when I have to dress up and when to wear casual clothes." Benji replied. "I just wished that for this meeting I wouldn't need to wear a tie."

"You have to make a good impression." Eri said. "A well dressed man will always make a good impression, you know what they say, the clothes make the man." "And if everything goes well in few months we will send the girls to that school too." Fuuka added with a smile, she was so looking forward to that, but first she needed to teach the girls the basis of connivance with others and how to hide their abilities from the others.

"So you will take the Yamaha or Subaru?" Eri asked. "The Subaru." Fuuka said before Benji could answer. "Remember impression, he will look better coming out of the Subaru instead of riding on a Yamaha, it will also make sure that his clothes doesn't get dirty, and in the case of taking the principal to some other place the car is better too."

"Well Fuuka does have strong points there." Eri commented. "But I prefer the Ford." Benji said. "SU-BA-RU!" Fuuka replied seriously. "And the Subaru is cheaper than the Ford, we might have a fortune that we stole from the organization and what we had before but as far legitimate reasons, we don't have much money or explanation for that much money."

"Once again Fuuka is right." Eri pointed out. "While the Subaru is also an expensive car it is easier to find here, so you can tell that you bought together with someone else or borrowed from a friend." Benji sighed a the two, if he truly wanted he could impose his will over them but he also knew that they had valid motives, he just didn't get used to the Subaru, it was from his past back on his world where the only Alcyone that he knew was the villain of Magic Knights of Rayearth, the car was good looking and comfortable, it was just his particular reasons weighting against it.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"I have to admit that you impressed me." Toshiko said to Benji with a smile. "You are going a little extra far to make an impression on the headmaster of the Yuzuhara Elementary School. I almost feel underappreciated."

"It is just that unlike it happened with you I don't have enough time to get to know the headmaster." Benji replied while driving to the school after picking up Toshiko. "We had seven meetings before making the arrangements that adding the phone calls, now I don't have that much time. I can't let Nagisa out of the school for so long."

Toshiko chuckled. "I know; I am just pulling your leg." She said with a smile. "It is good to start early, and as you said she is already a little late." Benji nodded confirming, according to Eri and Fuuka Nagisa was at least half a year behind the others in terms of social interaction, even with private education giving her more knowledge than the average.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Now let's discuss the terms of your presence here." Toshiko said to Benji after they finished the meeting in the Yuzuhara Elementary School that ended in Nagisa's late enrollment being accepted. "You will teach here for a period of ten months, including the winter break and the spring vacation, it is the final six months of Shigure-sensei's pregnancy plus four months of maternity leave."

Benji nodded in silence, while displeased that he would teach it was the condition that Toshiko had to putting a good word for him in the elementary school. "Your pay will be the same of a substitute teacher which should be enough for you to take care of your sister and cousin, and still have some to save." Toshiko continued.

………**Sailor Moon twist part 4………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………**

Once again the senshis are meeting on Rei's house. "We sure live in violent times." Motoko commented to the others. "I would never think that some guy would turn a car into junk killing everyone inside in a live feed for the entire country, speak about boldness."

"Yeah, but I kind of sympathize with the guy, his brother was killed and he was badly scarred, and the company that he worked for refused to pay for his treatment and his brother's posthumous benefits and compensations." Rei replied sipping her tea. "I can understand the drive for payback after everything that they did for those men. Not that makes the crimes less wrong; it justifies them, and doesn't make the crimes of those who were killed right either."

"And in the other hand our enemy is quite quiet lately." Minako commented. "Please tell me that you didn't call this meeting just to discuss a terrorist act." Haruka said to the inner senshis. "Well we did." Usagi said meekly. "It isn't just for that." Rei added. "Ami called."

"Which is quite odd since she is always punctual." Makoto commented. "She never gets late." "Sorry!" Ami exclaimed rushing to the room. "It took longer than I expected to finish." "It is okay." Michiru replied. "Why you called us here for?"

Ami rests a laptop over the table and boots it. "As the rest of you I have watched those horrible news from the day before yesterday." Ami said to them. "But I also noticed something, after hours selecting images, filtering and calculating several equations I came with a result."

"And how that affects us?" Haruka asked, Ami was getting too technical. "While I can't say for sure based only in the jacket that we found on you." Ami explained. "I have calculated the height of Akimoto, the man who attacked that car, it is approximately one meter and ninety nine centimeters, that counting his shoes and helmet, without them one meter and ninety centimeters."

"Well Ami while interesting, that jacket doesn't belong to a man that tall." Michiru pointed out. "And what about the shoulders?" "Well based in my calculations they are also broader than in the jacket." Ami answered. "But he could be wearing padding, the same with his height."

"True, so Ami what is the percentage of that man being the one who rescued Haruka?" Michiru asked seriously. "Less than fifteen percent." Ami answered. "But he was using military grade weapons, that machine gun is heavily controlled and is used only by the military. Looking solely on that side the chance increases to seventy six percent."

"But he is bigger than the man who rescued me." Haruka said. "So even if he was alive he doesn't fit the profile." "Actually there is something that is bugging me." Minako said raising her hand. "That Akimoto man died, but didn't the corpse as well his records say that he is under one meter and eighty centimeters? Even with tons of armor and that helmet he would be smaller than in the TV?"

"Well there is some debate over that subject." Ami commented. "But the state of the corpse because the explosion and following fire of the crashed car make hard to accurately pinpoint his height, and the measurement of him was old at least four years since the attack."

"There isn't that operation in China that makes you taller?" Makoto asked. "I red about that in a magazine a while ago, that many Chinese men were submitting themselves to an operation that would create small gaps in the leg bones, hold it with metal pins and frames so the bone would grow in the gap, I don't recall the details but is something like that."

"It is a possibility." Michiru commented. "But even if was true Akimoto is dead." The others remained in silence. "I had another reason to call this meeting." Ami said after a while. "After consulting with Setsuna, I think that I managed to create upgrade to our uniforms, they would be thermally insulated, which would protect us from harsh temperatures better than before."

"Now that is what I call advancement." Minako said recalling the cold that she felt and how long it took for her to feel her toes after that fight. "So I need your transformation wands to add that upgrade." Ami said to them. "I know that it would make us defenseless so first I will do in the inners so in case of an emergency the outers can fight."

"That is reasonable." Haruka commented with a nod, the inner senshis take their transformation wands and place them in the table before Ami. "And what about me?" Usagi asked, she doesn't have a transformation wand. "You give your compact." Rei said exasperated. Usagi blushed and places her compact next to her friends' wands.

"How long it will take?" Makoto asked, the idea of having to sit out while the outers fight doesn't please her. "It will take two days." Ami answered. "And after that you girls will need to test it to see if everything is okay, it is just a formality."

"We don't want you to learn in combat that there is something wrong and you girls will stand there buck naked." Setsuna said, the senshis blush madly at the idea, the sheer shame and embarrassment of imagining is enough to make them question the wisdom of the upgrade.

"That won't happen." Ami reassured her friends. "And in the unlikely case of happening it will be during the test, here in the shrine." "Well that is a little better." Minako commented. "And it shouldn't take all that long."

………Two weeks later………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Still not done?" Michiru asked to Ami. "Sorry." Ami replied with an apologetic smile. "I never guessed that the upgrade would reveal so many flaws in the system. I am still hammering down the bugs on our transformation wands." "I guess that all those power-ups would carry so many problems when coming so quickly." Michiru commented. "They just kept pilling and pilling without much of an interval between them."

Ami nodded agreeing, especially for the inner senshis that started in a lower rank than the outers, the successive power-ups through the years fighting the forces of darkness stacked up quicker than the wands and the magic science of them could process and correct problems of the stronger powers.

"As long there isn't an attack, Haruka and the others don't mind in being the ones able to change." Michiru said to Ami. "As much we don't like to admit the attacks are getting harder, and now with the environmental changes things are getting even troublesome, first was that unbearable heat, then came that snowstorm, I don't know if just the four of us would be able to handle an attack in another harsh environment as the snowstorm."

"I am sorry, I am working as fast as I can but there are still problems appearing on every new scan." Ami apologized looking at her tea cup. "Setsuna says that is because our wands are made by Silver Millennium technology and we are using technology of the New Silver Millennium or Crystal Millennium, since it is newer and more advanced when compared with the original it is causing minor incompatibilities."

"I understand that, like trying to install modern software in a twelve years old computer. Even if is compatible there will be bugs on it." Michiru commented. "That is just what is happening." Ami replied. "But when I am done dealing with your and the others wands will be fast."

"Actually it won't be all that easy either." Michiru said. "The outers use a different system than the inners, I am sure that you noticed that Makoto's wand is slightly different than the others right?" "I did notice that, so you mean that Makoto's wand is an outer wand?" Ami asked.

"Originally yes." Michiru answered. "But back in the Silver Millennium Jupiter was changed to a inner so her wand was adapted to work as a inner, I don't know all the details, but her wand isn't an outer or a inner anymore, somewhere in the between. It was advised to make a new one but the senshi back then didn't want to do it so it was left like that."

"But all the inner changes from the other wands are working on Makoto's." Ami commented. "But there are some particular bugs on Makoto's wand that isn't present in the others, I guess that the change explains why those bugs." Michiru sips her tea. "How long you think until the inners are back in duty?" Michiru asked. "At the best scenario one more week." Ami answered.

………One week after Benji started teaching……………………………………………………………………………………

"Why a church?" Michiru asked to Makoto, while Ami was fixing the transformation wands Makoto was investigating suspicious incidents that could be related to their new enemy as a way to do something helpful. "It was rumored to be haunted." Makoto answered. "Rei is busy with her classes today so she couldn't come and you are the only other psychic of the team."

Michiru nodded understanding, if there was something she was bound to feel something odd. "But why people left an old and deserted church in ruins in the middle of the city?" Michiru asked.

"Based in what I gathered in the past month this church is supposedly owned by a private party." Makoto answered. "Since the terrain is indeed private, the city can't demolish it, now it is as we see; an old building that appears to be falling apart from the outside, but still solid from the inside."

"If this place is here long enough to be considered haunted then it should be unrelated to the enemy right?" Michiru brought out something that was bothering her. "What we know about the enemy?" Makoto replied. "We barely know anything about them, as far we know they could as well be some demons sealed under the city."

Michiru thinks on Makoto's words, the chestnut haired senshi had a point, they knew so little about the enemy that just ruling out the church just because was too old would be careless. "Someone is coming!" Makoto whispered harshly as the sound of footsteps echoes coming from the outside.

"To the confessionary!" Michiru replied in the same way, pulling Makoto on the direction of the old confessionary, just as they close the doors of the two cabins the front doors of the church are pushed open, casting three long shadows in the walkway between the two lines of benches of the church.

"As someone raised in a catholic country this sight kind of hurts." Benji commented walking inside the abandoned church. "I have to agree, it is sad to see a place of worship forgotten like this." Tsuruko agreed with Benji, following him inside. "But we are here to fix it."

"Why you called me anyway?" Benji asked to the long haired woman. "Isn't like you need my help, or Junko's." "Gee thanks." Junko replied annoyed. "I know that I am a weakling but you don't need to rub it on my face." "I am weaker than Tsuruko." Benji said to the short haired girl. "She can wipe the floor with me without breaking a sweat."

"I am not so sure of that Benji." Tsuruko said casually. "What you lack of skill you make up with stubborn resilience and dirt fighting. Besides exorcism shouldn't be performed alone, so I need people who I can trust to watch my back. And you know how much I trust my backside on you."

"I will pretend that I didn't notice the not so subtle flirt there." Junko said shoving her hands on her trousers' pockets; Junko is wearing well polished black leather shoes, black trousers with suspenders holding it in place, a white button up shirt and a black tie.

Tsuruko giggled amused, she is wearing a pair of dark blue sneakers, a pair of jeans pants with a brown belt around her waist, a dark green t-shirt and a white vest over it, her hair is tied in a simple ponytail. "You are too innocent." Tsuruko commented. "Forgive me for being a virgin." Junko said acidly.

Benji sighed at the barbs between the two; he is wearing a pair of black leather shoes, a black suit with a dark red shirt underneath it and a black tie. "Can we just deal with this and leave?" Benji asked to them. "Since I first got in Japan I really don't get along with holy places."

"That is because you are evil." Tsuruko cooed sweetly. "The nastiest demon that hell ever breed." Junko added in the same way, in a first moment agreeing with Tsuruko. "You corrupted a poor married woman, seducing her from her solemn vows." Tsuruko continued. "Using your unholy charms to defile her will and using your pulsating rod to fully corrupt her."

"Excuse me?" Benji said annoyed. "It was you who came after me in Kyoto, and I didn't knew that you were married back then." "And why you don't deny the demon part?" Junko asked teasingly. "After everything that I did in the past years?" Benji replied with a shrug. "I am most likely going to burn in hell anyway."

Michiru and Makoto hear the conversation feeling very awkward and embarrassed. "Well if I did believed in hell I agree that you might end there." Tsuruko commented hugging Benji from behind, wrapping his chest with her white arms. "But since I don't believe in hell and I don't believe that you did anything bad I don't think that you would end in hell, besides I like warm places."

Junko sighed annoyed. "Why you two don't make out later? You are scaring the demons away." She said annoyed. "What kind of demon would be scared of sex?" Tsuruko asked casually. "They are supposed to like it. And according to the Catholic Church favor anal sex."

Junko blushes madly at Tsuruko's words, unknowing that Michiru and Makoto are also blushing in the same way. "Well now that you mention the church keep saying that sodomy is bad, is the way of demons." Benji commented. "I fail to see why since it feels good."

"I agree with you there." Tsuruko commented. "Anyway leaving the anal sex for later we should start looking for the demons, I am supposed to go back to Kyoto tomorrow morning so I want to end this soon and enjoy the rest of the day." Junko sighed at the shameless older woman words.

"Junko, see if you can locate anything with your detection spell." Benji said to the girl. Junko nodded and holds her hands over her chest and whispers something. "Stop!" Tsuruko exclaimed, light flashes around them filling the church. "Too late." Tsuruko said blinking a couple of times. "I don't believe on this, a denial melody very well hidden, cast to react when a spell is cast."

"Denial melody?" Benji asked confused, he wasn't familiar to all the magic systems. "It isn't a song or melody in the literal sense of the word." Tsuruko replied. "It is a token incantation; it draws the magic power from the surroundings in the dormant state. The legend says that originally spells with the words; song, melody, lullaby, and any other related to music were originally spells that required a musical instrument and be sung."

"So it is like bard magic from RPG?" Benji asked. "In those lines." Junko answered rubbing her throat. "But is more discreet than that, but the entire church is now a non-magic area, the denial melody expelled the magic of the environment and denies the use of magic inside."

Benji rummages on his pockets. "My hidden space isn't working either." He said when unable to access his hidden weapons. "My onmyo isn't working either, it is a good thing that I left Shippuu home." Tsuruko said. "Mou, two tantos are hardly enough for a good exorcism."

"Come on Tsuruko you are better than I am with a blade." Benji said pulling his pocket knife from his pocket. "All that I had on me was his one." Punctuating his words Benji presses the button releasing the blade, and then he locks the button to prevent an accidental release of the locked blade.

"And I that am not carrying anything?" Junko complained. "I am mostly defenseless without my sorcery." "You certainly don't walk like a plain support spellcaster." Tsuruko sneered. "You do know some martial arts; I can tell by the way that you walk." "I know some aikido." Junko replied. "But hardly enough to defend myself of human attackers, not enough for demons."

Benji sniffs the air, both Tsuruko and Junko stop taking and stay still, Michiru and Makoto tenses and remain in absolute silence and hold their breathes. "What you picked up?" Tsuruko asked in a soft whisper. "Feels like perfume." Benji answered looking around. "But at the same time isn't perfume. It is a hard to define scent."

"At least you senses aren't affected by the denial, who would know that the curse would be so handy." Tsuruko commented. Junko nodded agreeing. "Benji don't move on your own." Junko said as Benji moved towards the altar. "Then we go with him." Tsuruko said to the other girl. "Whatever is the source of the scent can't be natural; this place is abandoned for years."

Michiru could feel Makoto's eyes against her, silently reproving her for wearing perfume, it wasn't her fault; she always wears a hint of perfume. "Something isn't right." Tsuruko said to the others. "Denial melody isn't a good spell to keep as a trap." "So what you think?" Benji asked while running his fingers on the dust covered altar.

"There is indeed something here." Tsuruko answered. "Yuurei or yokai, something with intelligent and with spell casting abilities. This place must be the lair." "If is haunted then it wouldn't mean that ghosts live here?" Junko pointed out. "That is the whole point that we are here for, exorcise the ghost."

"You don't get it do you?" Tsuruko replied. "We are in disadvantage here, we are in a denial area, in unfamiliar grounds and under armed, we don't even know for sure what lurks here, I don't flee from battle, but I also know when to temporary retreat to reorganize. Facing a possible strong entity here in these conditions is strongly prejudicial for us."

"Benji what you think about this?" Junko asked to Benji, whatever he decided she would support. "Tsuruko is a seasoned exorcist warrior." Benji answered. "If she says that we should pull back for now and come back more equipped later then I say that we should do what she says, she knows what she is doing."

Tsuruko smiled pleased, she knew that Benji would understand her reasons and respect her experience. "I guess that we have no choice then." Junko commented moving to the door. "What waste of time…" Junko looks at the shut doors and then turns to Benji. "Benji did we close the doors after we entered?" She asked pointed to the two large wooden doors.

"No." Benji replied looking at the doors. "You were the last one to enter, I was the first and I left open." "And I didn't hear you closing the door." Tsuruko said to Junko. "I didn't even heard when they closed." The trio tenses and Junko walks closer of Benji and Tsuruko.

In the confessionary Makoto and Michiru get tense and scared, something was happening, they could feel it. "Tsuruko your spirit control is better than mine can you access spirit techniques?" Benji asked while keeping a firm grip on his knife. "Since it isn't magic it shouldn't be affected."

"I will try." Tsuruko replied, she makes a sign with her left hand and closes her eyes. Tsuruko smiled and opens her eyes, looking pleased at a concentrate aura around her left hand. "Ki isn't denied in here." Tsuruko said. "Spirit attacks can be used. I forgot about them, shame on me, I need to train more since I forgot the basic principle of my Shinmei-ryu."

A smirk traces Benji's lips. "You just have too much in your mind." He said casually. "And having a gay husband only makes things worse." "Her husband is gay?" Junk asked confused. "To not have sex at least twice a day with a woman as gorgeous as Tsuruko he must be." Benji replied.

"As far I know he isn't gay." Tsuruko said seriously then she stops, thinks and scratches her chin with her right hand. "You know, now that you brought that up, I start to wonder. A straight man would get excited if I walked around naked after a shower and bend over in front of him right?"

"Right." Benji answered, he can't deny that just the image excites him, but used to more intense sights it doesn't affect him much. "A normal male would get a hard on and then pounce on you." Tsuruko guessed as much. "I fear that he might be gay then." She said. "Looking back to all the times that I hinted, flaunted and openly tried seduce him in the past; that is the only explanation for the lack of reaction."

Michiru had to agree with them, she could see Tsuruko well enough and she wasn't afraid to say that the other woman was beautiful and the idea of having sex with Tsuruko excited even her, to a man not respond to Tsuruko's advances he had to be blind or gay. In the other hand Makoto is almost dying of shame and can't understand how they can speak about such things in that situation.

Benji suddenly but strongly stomps in one of the wood benches breaking it and sending large pieces of sharp wood on the air, Benji takes a step in the direction of the air born pieces of wood and kicks the largest one in a straight line, the shard of wood stops in the middle of the air as if met some invisible obstacle.

"I think that is the first time that I see you kicking." Junko commented. "But how you saw that?" "Who said that I am seeing anything?" Benji replied. "Then what you are using?" Tsuruko asked. "I can't feel anything." "It isn't only my sense of smell that was enhanced." Benji replied.

The piece of wood falls in an arch, similar of one of a limp body falling down, then the air around the wood darkens until finally reveals an entirely black bodyline that crumbles into dust, the wood falls with a small noise. "I hate invisible creatures." Tsuruko muttered. "Even my senses being sharp I can't pick up noises as you do."

"They also smell like rotten sand." Benji commented. "Rotten sand?" Junko asked confused. "I don't know if sand could rot." "It is the closest thing that I can describe." Benji replied. "They also make a kind of gritting sound when moving."

"I didn't hear anything." Junko said. "Me neither." Tsuruko added. "You are sure that isn't in a sound length that humans can't hear?" "It isn't like I can tell you know." Benji replied. "I just hear, I can't tell if is infrasound or ultrasound, it is just sound for me." "One day we will make some tests on you to learn the exact reach of your audition." Tsuruko said. "But now I just want to know how to fight whatever is in here."

"You two get down." Benji said, knowing better than asking for an explanation they obey first. Benji takes his knife to his neck makes a cut in the right side of his neck over the artery, blood sprays from the thin cut, a thin mist of blood droplets falls far from Benji, coating everything red.

Tsuruko recovers from the shock and understands what he is doing, drawing her two daggers from her vest Tsuruko attacks several blood covered invisible figures, the blood allowed her to know where to slash.

"Benji!" Junko exclaimed while Benji covers the cut with his left hand. "I am fine. It takes way more than this to put me down." Benji replied wincing. "Please tell me that you didn't burn the artery." Tsuruko said turning to Benji, she had quickly killed all the attackers. "I can feel the scent of burnt flesh."

"I just cauterized the artery, the cut was small." Benji replied. Tsuruko sighed. "That is dangerous." She scolded him, Junko nods agreeing. "Anyway we should find the source of those creatures." Benji said to her. "As soon they are gone sooner we can leave." The two women sigh as one but agree in doing so.

After ten minutes Junko sits in one of the benches. "This is annoying." She said tired, they searched on the entire church and didn't find a thing. In that time Michiru and Makoto felt their blood freezing on their veins when Benji looked straight to the confessionary were they are hiding, far too close for their liking. Michiru was sure that Benji knew that they were there, but he told to Tsuruko and Junko that there wasn't anything there.

Benji looks at the altar, they had already examined the church and the living area behind the church where in the past the priest would live, but he had an odd feeling nagging him. Tsuruko looks at Benji that is gazing at the dust covered cross in silence, the still open cut on his neck no longer bleeds but the dry blood that escaped from it clings on his skin.

"Why you are so thoughtful?" Tsuruko asked worried. "The desecration of this church bothers you? It is after all from the religion that you grew believing." Benji denied with a nod. "It isn't that." He said. "You know that people say that dogs can tell if someone is scared right?"

Tsuruko nodded confirming. "They can smell the hormones." Tsuruko replied. "It excites them. Wait, you mean you can smell fear?" "Yes and no." Benji answered. "It is hard to explain, tastes like fear, but it is different, it is almost like it isn't fear at all." Tsuruko couldn't understand his explanation, she didn't blain Benji for being so vacant about it, trying to explain with words a scent is something hard to do, and when you try to explain to a normal person how a scent that they can't feel is even harder.

"What else?" Tsuruko asked. "Something stale too, not air, wood or anything like that, something more…" Benji paused for a moment. "Organic, living…" "Don't try too hard to understand." Tsuruko said in a gentle tone, lightly placing her hand on his shoulder. "You got that curse for a short time; you can't expect to fully understand everything in less than one year."

Tsuruko sees Benji's ears perking, he looks at the stone altar and walks to it, in any other situation Tsuruko would be angry for Benji so carelessly ignoring her gesture of affection and comfort, leaving her with her hand now in the air as he moves to the altar, but she knew that Benji was now in hunting mode, he heard something that stirred something inside him.

Benji kicks hard the altar cracking the stone, with a second kick he stone facing him shatters and a burst of black mist hits Benji dead on in the chest sending him flying across the church and landing on the benches shattering them. Benji growls and stands up, Tsuruko follows the mass of mist twisting and turning in the air above the cross, she knew better than charging without a plan.

"What the hell is that?!" Junko exclaimed while rushing to Benji's side. "A specter!" Tsuruko answered. "A fear specter, it creates illusions and hallucinations that induce fear on the victims and then it feed of their fear. They have the ability of steal knowledge of their victims."

"That explain why it knows the denial melody." Junko commented. "Benji?" Junko said while Benji walks back to the altar, the specter charges at Benji, but Benji backhands the mist sending it against a wall. Benji kneels in front of the broken altar and starts to move the stones away.

The specter charges again and Tsuruko blocks the attack. "You found the victim didn't you?" she asked while pushing the creature away. Benji tears a metal plate from bellow the altar and throws it away. (Shhh…) Benji whispered in a gentle tone in Portuguese. (There is no need to be scared…)

"Dear god please tell me that it isn't a baby's cry!" Junko exclaimed in horror, the stench of rotten flesh, stale and dead impregnates the church. Tsuruko charges at the specter that became solid, she knew that was now safe to kill it, Benji had severed the connection between the victim and the specter.

"Zanmaken Ni-no-Tachi!" Tsuruko shouted striking the specter, with a shrill wail it vanishes. Tsuruko sheathes her daggers and turns back to the altar, Benji now without is jacket is cradling a bundle made of his jacket on his arms. "No wonder we couldn't find it." Tsuruko said. "They sealed the specter under the altar in an attempt of imprison it."

Benji nodded agreeing. "But it wasn't just that specter that was sealed." Benji added, inside the altar there was the remains of skeleton, fabric and some odd organic nest. "They sealed a yokai." Tsuruko said crouching and examining the remains. "A female one, by the skeleton looks like a kemonomimi one, I am not sure of this, so Benji what kind is the child?" "I can't tell just by the ears." Benji answered. "And she smells like corpse so I can't tell by the scent either."

"How old is she?" Tsuruko asked. "I would give one year on the tops." Benji answered. "Well based on the state of the skeleton, the nest, the time that the church was abandoned and the pieces of cloth inside, the mother hibernated, or was forced to a state that her metabolism was slowed down so much that it took fifty years for the pregnancy reach the right maturation, from there the child was also placed on that state, the mother died at least ten years ago, the nest was made by the specter that when lost the mother turned to the baby as food source."

"You mean that this baby is chronologically older than I am?" Benji asked surprised. "Yokais can live much longer than humans, and their biology is very different too, the child looks healthy if you ignore the filthy, right?" Tsuruko replied. "Yes." Benji answered. "The mother died and the corpse still sent all the nutrients to the child for a long time, almost like happens to a chick in an egg." Tsuruko said. "Humans don't do that."

Junko walks to them with a handkerchief over he mouth and nose, she threw up because the stench. "Can we leave now?" She asked pale. "We can." Tsuruko answered. "So Benji what you will do with her?" "I can't just abandon her, and I am not that far gone to kill a baby." Benji replied. "I guess that I will be keeping her."

Benji snorted and then chuckled. "I am already with eleven surrogates on my lap." He said. "One more won't make much of a difference, thought it would be nice having more adults in the group, I am already overloading Fuuka with ten surrogates."

"We can think on something, now let's go to a hotel." Tsuruko replied. "We need to wash that child, after so many years trapped in fear and darkness she deserves to live in the light." Benji and Junko nodded agreeing.

Michiru and Makoto wait for ten minutes inside the confessionary before leaving, sure that they won't come back. "I don't know what to think about this." Makoto said covering her nose. "Clearly they aren't evil, but they are also very odd."

"When you deal with this kind of thing you have the right to be odd." Michiru said walking to the altar, using tissues from her purse Michiru collects some samples from the skeleton, the nest and the clothes, and then she moves to a bench and rubs a clean tissue on some blood.

"What are you doing?" Makoto asked confused. "Collecting samples." Michiru answered. "That man, Benji as those two women called him, he knew that we were here, you heard them, he have enhanced senses, he could feel our scents, our nervousness, our fear; but instead of exposing us to the other two he pretended that there wasn't anyone else here, and Makoto, he looked straight at us."

Makoto knew that, she recalled curling inside the booth hoping that he wouldn't open it and find her there. "And there is more." Michiru said carefully wrapping the tissue inside a plastic wrap from a chocolate bar. "He fits the profile, he is taller than an average Japanese male; has special powers, wears a tailored suit, and I can bet any amount of money that he has access to illegal weapons and wears Obsession."

"Aren't you jumping conclusions on this Michiru?" Makoto asked worried. "Maybe." Michiru answered. "I might be wrong and he might not be our mysterious man, but I have a feeling that he is, and if we find any trace of him in the jacket when I ask to Ami look for it again then I will prove it."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Six baths and she still smell." Junko said to Benji, who was bathing the demon child, as well taking his sixth bath. "But is weaker than before." "Well there goes the seventh. At least she is having fun in the water." Benji commented. "But the bathroom is running out of shampoo and soap."

Junko wonders what to do, meanwhile Benji is the child wrapped in a towel in his arms, the girl is happily pulling on the towel, her hair several shades lighter than before her first bath, Benji pulls the plug of the bathtub, draining the water before filling it again to wash the girl for the seventh time in a row.

"I am back!" Tsuruko exclaimed while entering on the room holding two large shopping bags. "I brought a package of diapers, baby formula, three bottles, three weeks worth of baby's clothes, baby oil, baby powder, all kinds of baby bathing goods and toiletries." It was more than clear that she had a great time shopping for baby's stuff.

"You bought shampoo and soap?" Junko asked. "Yes." Tsuruko answered placing the bags over the bed and rummaging on them. "Here, baby shampoo that doesn't sting the eyes if fall in the eyes, approved by dermatologists and tested." Tsuruko said holding a bottle of a golden semitransparent liquid and showing to Junko.

"You seem to know a lot about this." Junko commented taking the bottle. "After all I am a housewife; I wanted to have kids so I studied." Tsuruko answered while rummaging on the bags looking for the soap. "Babies have sensitive skin so they need specific products."

"Okay seventh is over." Benji said walking out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist, the baby wrapped in a towel on his arms, his air damp and drops of water run on his bangs before gathering in the tip and then falling on his chest. Junko moves to them and sniffs the baby.

"I think that she passes now." Junko commented. "Let me check it." Tsuruko said moving to Benji and sniffing the child. "Yes, she doesn't smell anymore." She said with a smile. "Let me hold her, so you can dry yourself and put some clothes." "But didn't she complain in the last time?" Junko pointed out.

"She has to get used to other people." Tsuruko commented while Benji carefully give her the child. The young demon cries with the transfer, Tsuruko gently rocks the girl and hums softly. Benji moves to the bathroom where he gets the last clean towel and dries his hair.

"Tsuruko you could dress her up too." Benji said. "Put her in the bed and make sure that she is dry." "Okay." Tsuruko replied casually, the demon child wasn't crying anymore as much Tsuruko could tell that she wasn't all that comfortable either. Few minutes later Benji leaves the bathroom in casual clothes. "I will burn the suit later." Benji commented; he knew that the stench wouldn't come out easily.

"Well in this line of work you have to get used to losing clothes." Tsuruko said finishing putting the clothes on the baby. "You thought in a name for her?" "Well I have few on my mind but I am not sure about them." Benji answered sitting on the bed. "Let's hear them." Junko commented.

"Sumire." Benji started, and is quickly interrupted by clapping. Tsuruko chuckled. "Well it is clear that she likes Sumire." She said looking at the baby who is happily clapping her little hands. "And Sumire is a pretty name after all." Junko commented. "But what you will do with Sumire?"

"I can't just take her home." Benji commented, if he showed up in the pension with Sumire Haruka would blow her top, he already was on her bad side, showing up with a baby less than one month after he appears with Nagisa would make her get even more suspicious about him, he still don't know how to deal with the other girls when the time came. "Things are already edgy as they are."

Tsuruko scratched her chin. "What about leaving her with me?" She asked, Benji begins to think on the possibility, the idea of Sumire coming as a mini-Tsuruko is even scarier than dealing with Haruka, Sumire with Shinmei-ryu knowledge and perhaps somewhere between Motoko and Tsuruko, definitely not something to look forward.

"I don't think that your family would accept a demon child." Benji replied. "We did that in the past." Tsuruko commented. "In matter of fact we have a half demon girl in training on the training grounds." Benji runs his hand on his hair. "Let's leave you taking care of her as a last resort, I don't want to burden you, and Sumire is quite attached to me." Benji said.

Tsuruko nodded agreeing, that was a fact, and even now the demon child crawled to Benji and is resting on his lap. "Then what about leaving her with the others in your group?" Junko asked. Images of a berserking Fuuka casting area spells on him fills Benji's mind. "Fuuka is with her hand filled with the girls." Benji answered. "And babies are way more high maintenance than ten years old. She would burn out."

Tsuruko nodded agreeing. "Waking up in the middle of the night, changing diapers, bathing, preparing bottles." She said. "And the list goes on; it isn't something to be taken lightly." "Then leaving her with me is out of picture right?" Junko asked. Benji nodded confirming. "You have your studies to worry about and the work to keep your school clean." Benji said. "Not adding sorcery."

"So you have anyone else to ask this?" Tsuruko asked. "Well I have one person that I prefer not have her taking care of Sumire." Benji answered. "And I might have someone, but that will depend if I play my cards right. She already raised a water spirit, so a demon child shouldn't be that different, but approaching her will be hard."

"And who is that person?" Tsuruko asked. "Well she is a water spirit that lives in Hinata; I kind of have her daughter in my group." Benji answered. "Well I guess that is time for a parent and teacher meeting."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Now wearing another black suit, this time with a white shirt under it Benji is facing a light blue haired woman. "Ah Tachibana-sensei, you are quite punctual." The woman said with a smile. "I am Chie Mizuumi, Chiemi's mother." "Nice to meet you ma'am." Benji replied with a smile. "I am Benji Tachibana; I am Chiemi's English teacher. It isn't much but I have brought some sweets."

Chie smiled. "I love sweets." She replied taking the offered parcel. "They are from a shop around here?" Benji smiled back. "No, I felt that something more unusual would be more appreciated, those are homemade sweets." Benji answered. "Chocolate sweets, if you like them I can teach you the recipe later."

"I love chocolate." She said. "Please come in, my daughter is upstairs, but I am sure that you will prefer starting this meeting just the two of us. I know that my daughter can be a handful sometimes." Benji enters in the house and takes his shoes as the etiquette required.

Ten minutes later Chie is laughing. "I saw this coming." She said wiping her tears away. "I keep telling to that girl to not go swimming in her other form so near of the city."

"It was kind of embarrassing to see a naked girl suddenly get those odd fin like ears." Benji commented sipping his tea. "I can understand the need to follow those basic instincts but she was too close of the place that I live, if was someone else who knows what would have happened."

Chie nodded understanding. "I did spoke to her about that." Benji added. "And kind of forced her to join my group, one of the members call it of pack, but is hardly a pack." "Chiemi needs that kind of thing." Chie commented. "While spirits and other mystical creatures like us aren't uncommon, normally we don't get along all that well, not to mention that is very hard to find others like us. Contact with others will be good for her."

Chie rests her tea cup on the table. "So you are a wolf right?" she asked. "Werewolf to be more accurate." Benji answered. "But I was born human and after I moved to Japan I got cursed when I was helping out my friends in China, so I am a cursed werewolf, no were as good as the real thing, but isn't all that bad either once you get used to it."

"As you probably guessed by now both Chiemi and I are water spirits, normally we are banded with mermaids, in a way you aren't all that wrong." Chie said. "But we don't have fish like tails; you can say that we are kind of cousins to mermaids. We can easily live in water or in land, I am sure that you know legends of river spirits, lake spirits and all those water related spirits from the countryside of this land."

"I have just a minor knowledge of those." Benji replied. "People would pray, give offerings and even sacrifice for those spirits asking for them to help in the harvest or for a good fishing." Chie nodded confirming. "We are from that family, our ancestors originally came from the sea, attracted by the sweet water of the land, for generations we lived in lakes, mountains and other bodies of water, even dam, those ones got used to the change of territory easily, anyway I moved from the mountains here to Hinata after the war, I like this city, it has mountains, rivers and the sea is quite near, a good place to raise a child."

"I can't deny that." Benji commented. "But doesn't the human population make hard for you two to enjoy the water freely?" "Well we can't change to our other form, which is more suited for water, you know we have less resistance when swimming, we can swim for days without getting tired." Chie answered. "And it feels good too, but we can enjoy water if we keep the human form, so isn't all that hard. But there are times that we like to find a nice and secluded river or lake of pure water to swim and have fun."

Benji nodded understanding, weeks earlier he isolated himself in the mountains to fully enjoy a more 'animal' period for a while to vent out instincts and just relax. "While this conversation is fun and the sweets are delicious I have a feeling that you aren't here just to tell me about my daughter's escapades." Chie said to Benji. "Or just as a meeting with a student's mother."

Benji nodded confirming. "You are right, there is more than that." Benji replied seriously. "As I told you I have group that we are calling pack, your daughter is part of it, unwillingly as she says, not that I force her to do things there, I do know that someone with her abilities might be needed in certain circumstances, and is also for her protection, but that isn't why I am here."

Benji pauses and rests his cup of tea on the table. "Currently in my group I have an effective of three adults, counting me, four if I count your daughter, but she is kind of a ghost member." Benji continued. "And because conflict with a certain human organization that was hunting people like us, I now have twelve children under my care, currently one of the other two adults are taking care of ten of the children as we speak, I am taking care of the eleventh, and I need help with the twelfth. That is why I came speak with you ma'am."

Chie sips on her tea, she appreciated the honesty. "Is that child human?" She asked. "Demon." Benji answered. "I am not entirely sure of her specific race, but I think that she is reptilian related, and her apparent age is one year old, chronologically she is older than that but she was sealed and hibernating."

Chie nodded understanding. "Of course that I am not asking this without offering an compensation." Benji continued. "I will cover all her expenses, food, clothes, medicine, toiletries, everything; and paying you for taking care of her, four thousand dollars by month plus expenses. And in the first months a white card to pay for furniture and if needed remodeling of the house."

"Mother you can't be seriously thinking in accepting that offer!" Chiemi exclaimed from the stairs where she was peeking on the two. "Of course that I am seriously considering this." Chie replied gesturing to her daughter to join them. "As you heard from our conversation I do believe that us mystical being should help each other and be a close community, we are speaking about the well being of a lost child."

Chiemi remained in silence and sits next to her mother. "And I do miss having a child around the house." Chie commented. "The money will also be welcomed; while we have a source of income another one wouldn't hurt, sure babies are a lot of trouble, but they are cute."

Chiemi sighed and glares at Benji. Chie slaps the back of Chiemi's head. "Don't glare at your pack leader." She said seriously. "I didn't raise you to challenge a superior like that." "Mom he blackmailed me!" Chiemi exclaimed rubbing her head. "I warned you several times to not swim near that pension, you reap what you sow, and you got lucky that was another mystical being that saw you, one that is nice enough to not imprison you." Chie replied.

"Where is the child?" Chie asked. "She is with a friend." Benji answered. "Well then bring her here." Chie replied. "I will take a look on her and then decide." Benji nodded and calls Junko. Half an hour later Chie is holding Sumire. "She is so cute." Chie said with a smile. "And you were right, she is reptilian. To be more precise snake."

"How can you tell that?" Benji asked. "She looks just like a baby girl." "For starters as you noticed in the past is the slim and forked tongue." Chie answered. "Second the very discreet spots between her eyes and nose, they are hard to notice, but they are pit organs, right now they are of a slight different color than her skin, but pretty soon they will be invisible."

Benji nodded understanding; he did know about those organs, they allow snakes to see heat. "Lastly the venom glands." Chie said pointing to Sumire's mouth. "You can notice right now because she is a child and still doesn't have teeth, but quite soon when her teeth grow and she gets the full set she will have an extra set of fangs, retractile ones that when she will it will appear over her canines to inject the venom."

"I didn't noticed." Benji commented. "Unless you know what you are looking for you don't see it." Chie replied. "So how she reacted to the formula?" "I think that rather well." Benji answered. "I mean she didn't eat anything since her birth so the formula was the first thing that she ever drank."

"So you think that a little diarrhea is understandable." Chie said. "And you are indeed right, demons with human shape are essentially mammals, even when clearly reptilian origin, that is why the females have breasts. It will take a week or two for her to get used to digest."

"You aren't really thinking on accepting this are you?" Chiemi asked to her mother. "Why not?" Chie asked. "She is cute; I don't do much during the day anyway." "However Sumire is quite attached to me." Benji commented. "She is just starting to accept others."

"Don't worry about that." Chie said. "I am a water spirit, snakes like water." Benji decided to not say anything, besides Sumire looked comfortable with Chie. "So you need anything else?" Chie asked. "If you want you could work part-time with the others too." Benji replied. "The person looking after her right now would love the help."

"Sounds good." Chie commented. "Then I will throw another two thousand if you help everyday." Benji said. "As many hours as you want in a minimal of four." "Deal." Chie replied. "It is like a daycare isn't it?"

"Well it is close but is also like elementary school too." Benji answered. "The girls doesn't know much about social interaction and mundane stuff, so they need to learn a lot of things before they can have a regular life." Chie nodded understanding. "Well that sounds like fun." She said excited. "I don't work since I was removed from my old job."

"What happened?" Benji asked. "She was expelled from the kindergarten because she attacked the headmaster." Chiemi answered. "He tried to rape me." Chie said puffing her cheeks. "It is only fair that I ripped his dick with my teeth." "As a man I can sympathize with his pain." Benji commented. "But since I am also cruel to rapists I think that you were quite light on him."

"So what you would do?" Chie asked. "Depends of my mood." Benji answered. "The last one that I killed I nailed him in a wall, stabbed him in the hip, shoved a ball of plastique on his mouth, taped it shut, made him hold the detonator, then I made a cut in his groin and left him to die with a dead man switch detonator on his hand."

"Nasty." Chie said with a smile. "I like it." "You are even worse than she is!" Chiemi exclaimed angrily. "As Chiemi said I lost my job." Chie answered. "And I am on the blacklist of teachers because of that, those sexist pigs of the board are afraid of letting a woman who teaches girls to fight back their rapist, teach a new generation of women to not accept their advances."

"Well I don't care about that." Benji commented. "I kind of support that." Benji scratches his chin and looks to Chie, and then he smiles. "What you would say if I told you that I would sponsor a kindergarten or daycare, whatever you want to name it, with you as the principal, director or headmaster of it?" Benji asked. "And the first group of students would be the girls of my pack."

Chie smiled back. "Now that is an interesting proposal that you laid for me." She said clearly interested. "What else I gain?" "Official joining the pack or group, the one that I lead." Benji said leaning forward. "Private budged, of course a sensible one for a institution like that, freedom to select the employees, but I do want to be consulted before hiring, it is my surrogates who will be the first group of students, unless I like of the person I won't expose them to the person."

"I like those terms." Chie replied. "You have problems with mystical beings being the staff?" "As long they aren't evil I don't mind, we are all mystical beings here." Benji answered. "However the girls while possessing superior affinity with the mystical forces they aren't mystical creatures, even thought a couple of them look like."

"I understand." Chie said. "Sensible exposure, a normal childhood or a closest one as possible, their choice to be mage or a spirit user right?" "Right." Benji replied. "Those girls suffered a lot, so I want them to be happy, being the path of happiness something that they decided on."

"I think that we will get along just fine." Chie said. "So leader when I meet the other pack mates?" "What about tomorrow?" Benji answered. "All the official pack members will be there." "You have unofficial ones?" Chiemi asked. "I need contacts outside the pack, the same goes to friends." Benji answered.

Chie can understand that. "Well tomorrow is fine for me too." She said. "It will give me plenty of time to get ready, and prepare Chiemi too, after all she is from the pack too." "What? Mom I don't want to!" Chiemi exclaimed. "Chiemi, this is a good opportunity for us, we hardly have any friends who we can share our real selves to, and belonging to a group is also essential for our survival, you heard those rumors about an organization that was hunting and killing magical beings." Chie said in a serious tone.

Benji decides to ask about that later, but he had a pretty good idea that it was Nodoka's organization, the fact that he was getting two more adult members will make things easier on everyone.

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Over the ruins of the building that once housed the base of Nodoka's organization three people stand over the edge ruins. "It caved in quite badly." One of them said crouching by the edge. "I guess that at least five meters bellow the street level." The three of them are wearing long black coats with hoods over their faces, hiding their features.

"They really went overboard." The person in the left side of the one crouched commented. "What a waste of a good base in perfect conditions." "They didn't eliminate the entire opposition, only the key members and everyone inside this base." The person on the right side said. "This place was compromised from the beginning for them, so it was useless, it is better to get rid of the base than leave it here so the enemy could use them."

"You should know that better than us Leo." The person in the middle said standing up. "The Russians did that against the Germans in the world war two. They burned out houses, poisoned water supplies, everything so the German army wouldn't use them." "I know, but I still think that is a waste." Leo replied.

"Anyway enough with history, you brought the sonar?" The figure in the middle said. "I have it." The figure in the right replied. "So I take it down there and scan the entire area?" "Yes." The one in the middle replied.

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"Man that took a while." The person with the portable sonar said. "So what are the results?" "Total collapse of the structure." Leo answered. "No pockets or gaps that could house survivors, not even a piece of hallway intact, even the ground between the level gave in, that is why the entire area caved. The best way to proceed is to dump as many tons concrete down there, fill the areas between the wreckage the best as possible, level the ground and then build over it. Removing the wreck would be far too time and money consuming."

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Author explanation corner part 2:

Subaru Alcyone: Benji didn't buy that car, it belonged to Fuuka's former group, and the same goes to his Yamaha.

Ami: After some consideration I thought that Ami should call a meeting over the 'terrorist' because his use of strictly military use weapons and above the average height. For anyone asking why Benji was so 'big' on Ami's calculations, the reason is armor, padding and boots with thick (way thicker than the average) soles, the purpose of those as well the helmet is to throw of Benji's height, let's admit that there is technology to accurately pinpoint the height of a man in a video, since Benji is taller than most Japanese changing his height is good for him.

Transformation wands upgrade: Thin and rather skimpy battle uniforms, come on is pretty obvious that those can't protect the senshis from the harsh elements, and let's remember that originally the senshis where the bodyguards of the Moon Queen, so they fought inside a castle where there isn't winds or snowstorms.

Sure there is magic on them, but there are limits over how much protection they can provide without changes on the 'system'. And based in Negima, Sailor Moon, Fate Stay/Night and Magic Girl Lyrical Nanoha, magic is also technology and produce magic items (Negima and Fate, and Sailor Moon), technologic items (again Negima, Sailor Moon and now Nanoha, and I also think on Fate since there is the 'magic circuit') as Ami's computer, the Cassiopeia watch and Chachamaru from Negima. And in Nanoha's world magic itself is considered a technology, I won't get in details on this.

So the wands have technology on them as well magic, or magic technology, the same goes to all the other items from Sailor Moon as the communication devices and Ami's computer, so they can get upgrades to enhance performance, in the show they took place as the power-ups that they get each season.

Since the wands are with the senshis since the first season is reasonable to believe that it they are from the Silver Millennium, therefore older than all the present nations ages combined, Setsuna can go back and forward in time from the present to the future, so it is reasonable to think that she would bring back for the senshis some useful items from the new Silver Millennium or Crystal Millennium, the technology and the magic even based from the old Silver Millennium would be different from the original, causing the problems that once solved won't happen again.

Church incident: Came different than what I imagined but still close enough, Makoto isn't a smart girl, at least not like Ami, she is a more 'average' one, a more physical one so she would try doing something else to help in her 'downtime', so she was doing some investigation and legwork. Michiru was there because her psychic powers, as well her mirror that reveal the truth among other powers.

Tsuruko was there because she was asked to do an exorcism there, with a perfect excuse to go to Tokyo and fool around with Benji later she called Benji to help, Benji called Junko who is a mage (still in training putting in a normal school setting for her magic knowledge she would be in high school) to help out.

This event is supposed to be a pointer for Michiru about the 'mystery man' incident with Haruka, allowing to Michiru and the senshis having more information to start their search on him.

Since I am still not sure if the Sailor Moon twist will be added to the 'main' series of this story and the church even as well the meeting with Chiemi's mother (fish girl) are part of the main story, disregard the Michiru and Makoto's events of the church scene, (quite easy since there isn't much of a interaction between Benji and his group and the two senshis).

Sumire: Originally she was going to have six years old (physical appearance), but I decided that there was already plenty of those around and I needed something more innocent and harmless than that, so the concept changed to an infant. In the original concept she would be the one 'haunting' the church, her territory protecting it from strangers, she was also a kemonomimi girl (animal ear a couple of examples cat girls and bunny girls).

Since the church event became different than the originally planned so did Sumire, and then she became a good way to introduce Chie and Chiemi, as well getting them on the group.

Chiemi and Chie: The girl that Benji first met in chapter three and then again in chapter five, since as I mentioned over and over in the story Benji is looking for more companions on his group, and even without the two water spirits is already a mess, a cursed human, a werewolf, a mage, ten genetically altered girls, and we can't forget the unofficial ones on Mizuki, Rin, Shiaki, Junko and Saeki (those never went to the base or stay there so they are unofficial pack members because that).

Throwing water spirits there isn't all that odd when you consider everything else, and Tsuruko might as well join the pack based on her relation with Benji, so it is an odd group, why not make it weirder? More details on those two will be later revealed.


	13. All work no play

Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic. This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Love Hina I don't own or any of the characters of those shows. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed: Benji Himura.

This story begins in the Ranmaverse somewhere in the middle of the events of the chapter thirteen, actually between the release of Hinako and the events of the Gamble King events.

In the Love Hina timeline in the manga it stars after the chapter twenty six but before the chapter twenty seven.

This is a crossover so both stories casts or at least part of them will interact and there will be changes on both stories and on the plotline of Outcast Ranma. For anyone following the main story this scenario doesn't follow the same 'timeline' from the main story, it works on the line that timeline show on the story is the original one.

"Text" Talked sentences.

'Text' Thoughts.

-Text- Sounds effects.

(Text) Talked sentences in a foreign language as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

**Text**: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

_Text_: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

"_Text"_ Alteration in the voice, not in the tone but the voice itself.

Chapter thirteen: All work no play

Benji leans back on his chair in the teacher's lounge. "I so hate this work." Benji muttered. "What did you said?" Misato asked looking down at Benji's face, not much distance between them because Misato's short height. "What kind of language is that?" "It isn't important." Benji said in Japanese. "I am just sick of all this paperwork." "You get used to it after a while." Misato replied. "And your load of paperwork is not even half of mine; I have to make several pages of printouts for my students."

"I also make those." Benji said sitting up straight. "Using a method that an old teacher of mine used on her class, I use songs in English to help them to know the words; I make them translate the lyrics." "It is a good exercise." Misato commented with a nod. "I am impressed that you decided on doing that when you haven't even completed an entire week teaching here. Oh my, it is quite late. I have to move to my next class."

Benji looks at his watch and sigh. "So do I." He said standing up. "Another class, another horde of girls grating my nerves." Gathering a stack of English lyrics Benji leaves the lounge. 'Just one more class and then I can go home…well not to the pension…maybe I will go to a bookstore or someplace like that for some peace…'

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Motoko holds her head; she couldn't prepare herself enough for what is coming. "He is coming!" One of her classmates exclaimed while peeking by the classroom door, Motoko as well all the girls in the room knew well who 'he' was; it was so ironic that the only man that she actually looks forward to seeing now became the one teacher that she really doesn't want to see.

"Good afternoon ladies." Benji said casually. "Good afternoon Tachibana-sensei!" ninety percent of the class exclaimed cheerfully, that was everyone other than Motoko. "Okay anyone that isn't on her seat get back to it." Benji said while walking by the rows of chairs and handing some of the printouts. "As usual we will start with the translation so pick one sheet and pass the rest back."

Motoko felt her spirit being drained from her body as the girl in front of her hands her the stack of paper, dutifully Motoko takes one and gives the rest to the one behind her. "Okay, by now you all know the drill." Benji said moving to his desk. "You have twenty minutes to translate everything, every mistake will cost you one tenth of a point that will be subtracted and then removed from your grade, so ladies don't make too many mistakes, any grade bellow seven will fail, that means make up exams."

Motoko had already lost two points of her grade because of mistakes and Benji often gave them chances of recovering those points with other exercises, mostly for conversation, she was the one leading the lowest grade with several girls on her side. Benji pulls a pocket book from his pocket while the girls work on their task; not looking forward Motoko starts to work too.

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Motoko moves to the teacher's lounge after her club meeting is over, Benji was there working on the printouts of the day, most of the teachers already left, bowing politely to the other teachers Motoko moves to Benji. "I wasn't expecting you to be this bad in English." Benji said pulling Motoko's translation sheet from a pile and placing in an empty spot on his desk.

Motoko is embarrassed at his words and her own shortcomings. "I am not used the language." Motoko replied. "I know that English is an important language to learn, but is hard for me to practice it." Benji pulls a note and hands it to Motoko. She takes the note and reads it.

"What is this?" She asked confused, on the note there are several words in English. "That is a list of study supplements." Benji answered. "Well normally people would call them games, but most people underestimate the power of teaching that games have, I started to understand English because all the video games that I played with after I was fourteen was in English, so to understand the story I had to learn English, trust me Motoko, those games aided me more with my English than my English school did for two and a half years."

"You are telling me to play video games as homework?" Motoko asked even more confused. "That isn't right." "Is either that or face the fact that you lost another full point today." Benji replied. "That means that right now you are one mistake away from flunking on English and the period have barely started."

Motoko swallowed uncomfortably. "Okay what I am supposed to do?" Motoko asked. "First you buy one or all the games of that list, of course they are all in English, though there are some that are originally Japanese, you need the English version." Benji explained. "After you select the first one to play, any of them is okay, you have to finish the game at least once, all those games have multiple endings, some even have secret events that you can only achieve is paying close attention to the story play. Now here is the work, I want a resume of story of the game, from the beginning until the end or ends that you cleared, with the choices that you made that led you to that particular ending, and of course all in English."

Motoko stares at Benji, then at the list, and then back to Benji. "But there are at least ten games in here." Motoko said. "Fifteen." Benji replied. "All of them with long stories; some of them with at least ten hours of continuous game play, plenty of lines for you to learn and practice. There is even one in there that took me three years to clear."

"Three years?!" Motoko exclaimed in horror, she can't imagine why someone would play a video game for so long. "Not three years of straight playing." Benji explained. "Half an hour here, one hour there, not every day, few times I lost all my save spots and had to start all over again."

"Still…" Motoko replied. "I can't expend that much time playing some silly video games." Benji sighed. "Motoko that is your English homework as well make up work for your grades." Benji said seriously. "It isn't for fun, you have fifteen papers to deliver until the end of this period, you have to take this as serious as you take your homework, because that is what this is, homework."

Motoko felt the weight of his words on her, sure it wasn't a usual teaching method, but again Benji isn't a usual teacher, not even a teacher, so in an odd way it made sense. "What about the mistake cuts?" Motoko asked. "I am suspending that on you." Benji answered. "However you are still going to translate as all the others, and do all the other assignments as any of the other girls."

Motoko nodded understanding, in a way she was content that Benji wasn't giving her any preferential treatment, but part of her was angry that he wasn't doing it. "One last thing Motoko." Benji said. "I expect you to be more active in my class, voluntary yourself to read few lines of textbook or a sentence that I read, if you continue to not showing interest I will have to make you a voluntary."

Motoko knew what he meant, he was telling her that unless she started to participate of the class he would ask her to translate and read things from the book. Benji remained in silence as Motoko cried in her way of showing an unwilling or saddening resolution on a guts pose. "I understand." Motoko said. "Good." Benji replied.

"Now that this is over." He said while standing up. "You are going back to the pension?" "Yes." Motoko answered a bit surprised. "I give you a ride." Benji said. "I am also done for the day." "What about Ranko?" Motoko asked. "Her club is on a visit to a bakery today." Benji answered. "Fujisaki-sensei was all excited about that, and as Ranko's guardian I had to sign her permission for the trip, they will return after five."

Motoko nodded understanding; she was so worried about her English results and seeing Benji as a teacher that for a moment she almost forgot that he was Ranko's brother and lives in the Hinata-sou.

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"That was definitely the best field trip ever." Riko commented with a smile. "All cake that we could eat." "You know we were supposed to see how a professional bakery bakes cakes." Ranko said in a flat tone. "Not to stuff ourselves with all the cake that we could eat."

"And so spoke the girl who ate seven WHOLE chocolate cakes." Tomomi said in a teasingly tone. "And three strawberry cakes, two peach cakes and four slices of vanilla cake. That before Fujisaki-sensei stopped you." "Well I also learned how to bake those strawberry cakes." Ranko replied with a pout. "I didn't go there only to stuff myself with cake."

"Excuses, excuses." Riko teased. "So what we do now? Go home? Check out some magazines?" "I think that we should go back home." Tomomi replied. "We have plenty of homework to do for math, history and literature." "We can't forget English either." Ranko commented with a sigh. "Since we are familiar to Benji we are his main targets if we slack off."

"And I thought that being related to a teacher would make things easier." Riko commented sighing. "I can't slack off or he will know." Ranko commented. "And there is the whole not taking work home stuff too, so trying to see the answers for the questions is out of the picture."

"Wouldn't that make easier to steal them from his desk?" Tomomi asked. "Knowing Benji he booby-trapped his desk." Ranko answered. "Some paint bomb or some kind of stunner, if not that and more, Benji can be inventive." Riko laughed. "You know it would be funny to see the wonder whores getting blasted with paint catching them red handed cheating." She said wiping tears from her eyes.

"It would be funny." Tomomi replied. "But isn't like they care about that." Ranko smiled. "Well they would after Benji gets his claws on them." Ranko commented. "It doesn't show but Benji is quite wicked and would come up with some really, really nasty punishment for them and would enforce it to them."

"He can't be that bad." Riko said. "Trust me when I say this Riko." Ranko said seriously. "You don't want to see Benji's bad side. You remember that day don't you?" "You mean that he did that to you?" Riko asked in shock. "He tricked me." Ranko answered. "He knew that I wouldn't resist those chocolates and made them filled with the strongest laxative that he could find, and you two know very well the results."

"God he is cruel." Tomomi commented scared. "Doing that in purpose to his sister." "Well I started by making him sick so he was taking revenge." Ranko said. "But yes Benji can be cruel, now if he did that to me imagine what he would do to total strangers."

Riko shivered and then chuckled. "I don't know if I want to see it or not." She commented with a smile. "But is something to look forward to." "As well an incentive to not be on his bad side." Ranko said and Tomomi nodded agreeing. "Let's go to my place, if we work together we can finish this homework faster." Riko said to her friends.

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Looking at Benji in the meeting room facing all the other teachers wasn't something that Toshiko was expecting. "So is just this?" Benji asked in a level tone, but the insubordination coming from him and even how he worded the question was almost tangible; however as more it angers the vice-principal seeing that in a subordinate, there wasn't anything that he could do. Toshiko was uneasy but at the same time impressed with Benji.

"Then I am leaving, I have translations to correct." Benji said to them. "You won't say anything to defend yourself?" The vice-principal asked to Benji, the dislike that the middle aged man feels for Benji is as tangible as the insubordination coming from Benji.

"If I have done something wrong then I would have to defend myself." Benji replied. "You went to a student's house and live with another student in the same house." The vice-principal said. "You know how immoral is that?" Benji smiled. "You are saying that having a parent teacher meeting with the mother of one of my students is immoral?" Benji asked. "That the fact that I was discussing with a parent regarding the well being of her daughter is wrong?"

"And what you say about living in the same house as one of your students?" The vice-principal asked. "We live in a pension with eight more people." Benji answered casually. "She lives in the third floor and I live in the second, I live across the hall from my sister, who is also a student here, in the room next to mine is my cousin, and before I was a teacher on this school I lived there. If there is any immorality is in your mind vice-principal."

Toshiko as well most of the teachers hold their laughs at the fuming vice-principal. "And what is criminal here is the fact that you took secret pictures of me, my sister and more than one of the students of this school without their permission." Benji added with a smile. "And from the quality of the pictures I would say that you used a professional camera with some very powerful zoom lenses, the kind that can be used to take pictures at a great distance, among the uses for those are surveillance, indiscreet pictures, spying on people."

The vice-principal can't say anything in anger. "Now that you mention that Tachibana-sensei." Sayuri said taking one of the pictures that the vice-principal brought as incriminating evidence against Benji. "Isn't that kind of thing used by perverts to take pictures of women changing or bathing?"

"It wouldn't be surprising." Benji replied. "With that kind of expensive equipment someone can take pictures at a good distance if that person finds a good angle." Sayuri nodded understanding. "Didn't we get some complaints from the swimming club that they saw some odd reflexes on the roof in the direction of the pool more than few times?" Akemi the physical education teacher asked to the others, she was also the teacher responsible for the swimming club.

"Ryuzaki-kun did complaint that to me once." Arisa, the math teacher replied. "She said that several other girls of the team spotted that in the past but never got there in time to find anyone. They do need to change and then go to the roof, until then whoever is there left with plenty of time."

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Benji stretched and moves to his bike parked on the teachers' parking area. "You knew of that even before this meeting didn't you?" Toshiko asked to Benji while walking next to him. "You knew about the vice-principal's 'hobby'. That is why you brought it up."

"Now how would I know about that when I am here for less than one month?" Benji asked casually. "Isn't like I noticed the way that he looks at the students or how he hates how the girls swarm over me."

"Be honest with me Benji you know that I won't tell to anyone." Toshiko said with a smile. "The camera is quite bulky." Benji said. "Unlike you the vice-principal doesn't have his own office so he uses the lounge as the others, I noticed the camera when he works on his desk, and of course in the beginning I thought that was some harmless hobby as picturing birds or landscapes; that kind of photography hobby, but it was there too often to be something that casual."

"So you thought since he doesn't take with him in the weekends or bring in a Monday you figured that was to be used in the school." Toshiko concluded. "How you eliminated the possibility of being used in school events?"

"The camera is too expensive, and the accessories for them are also above the price for items to be used in the school, unless in clubs like the photography club or the news club, but if was from those clubs it would be in the clubroom." Benji answered. "The last piece was the fact that the camera was a Canon, the cameras for the clubs are Nikons."

'I also heard some of the girls gossiping about the vice-principal being a pervert.' Benji added to himself. 'One of the upsides of a sensitive hearing.' "So what will happen now?" Benji asked. "That kind of behavior can damage the school's image." Toshiko chuckled at Benji using the vice-principal's words against him.

"Since the vice-principal broke under the pressure of the comments and questions, slipping out and showing that he is guilty of that, he has no other choice than resigning without making much of a fuzz." Toshiko answered. "If he does it is his image that will be damaged, and of course he will have to surrender every piece of negative and every single picture that he took, so they can be destroyed, or we would have to take this to the board and then the police."

"You know while I heard about this kind of things I wasn't expecting to see it." Benji commented. "I knew that happened but never thought that I would face it." "Everyone feels like that." Toshiko replied. "It is just statistics, numbers in some paper, distant from you until you see happening right in front of you. Sadly now I have to find a new vice-principal."

"I am not interested." Benji said in a flat tone. "You could at least let me offer you the job before denying it." Toshiko said with a pout. "The pay is better than a teacher's." "Still not interested." Benji replied. "Well we will see about that later." Toshiko commented. "But until I find someone you can think about that."

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Ranko leans on the bench that she is sited on and pulls a chocolate bar from her schoolbag; she tears the wrapping with practiced ease and starts to eat it. Even the sweetness can't take her mind from her thoughts. 'Am I being too selfish?' Ranko reflected on her past actions and her most recent discussion with Benji.

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"What you mean look around?" Ranko asked confused and annoyed. "This is your room." "I mean your life." Benji answered. "You asked me what I am doing and why I am teaching in your school, I am just moving with the flow by teaching there, but right now my immediate priority is to take care of the girls that I rescued from Nodoka. Even being a short term thing is still a perspective for the future. Now Ranko what you want for your future?"

"What?" Ranko asked backing away, surprised with the sudden question. "I asked what you want to do with your life." Benji answered. "If you don't want to stay here you can leave, I will make you a new identity and give you some support, but I won't go with you."

"Why that?" Ranko asked shocked with his words. "I can't watch over you forever Ranko." Benji replied. "I also can't abandon all the people who need me and are counting on me just because you want to leave Hinata, while I don't have as much freedom as I had before this life isn't bad either. Sure I wasn't planning that when twenty five years old I would have thirteen surrogate daughters, but even unplanned it isn't all that bad to arrive and being greeted by them. What you had before that you want to get back so badly?"

Ranko opens her mouth, unable to say anything she closes it, it was that before everything happened she was closer to Benji than she is now. "Ranko I don't have anything to get back to." Benji said seriously. "I killed some of the closest things that I could call of reason after they came after us. Motoko once asked me what I would do, I told her that I wasn't sure but going back to my old life in Nerima isn't something that I would do. Why I would want to do it? Is there anything there that would be a good reason?"

Benji pauses and leans on his desk. "Now is a good time to start asking to yourself the big questions Ranko." Benji said seriously. "What you want to do? What you want for yourself? Forget about me, forget about your father's expectations, your friends, rivals, everything, think only in what you want to do with your life. Because Ranko is about time for you start making the decisions on your life, since before I met you, you have been letting others guide your life, it is time for you to take the wheel and direct your own life. I gave you pointers and showed you the way, but even when we were attacked you left everything up to me, while I don't hold it against you, you should start to make your decisions, think things through, weight consequences and shoulder the responsibilities of your actions, I can't keep shouldering them for you, you also can't make someone else shoulder them either."

"And then what?" Ranko asked. "What will happen to me?" Benji's eyebrow twitches. "That is what I am telling you to think about!" Benji exclaimed angrily. "Jesus Fucking Christ Ranko I am telling you to think about your life! Do you want to keep studying? You want to travel and learn more martial arts? You want to settle down and find a lover? Use your fucking brain for a change! Ranko you are almost seventeen years old now! For how long you want me to hold your hand and make decisions for you?"

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Ranko sighed and take another bite from her chocolate. 'Not exactly what I wanted to hear but I guess that I needed to hear that.' Ranko thought, that argument with Benji was the first time that she saw him angry with her, it shocked her badly but also felt good, it was different from how Genma got mad at her, since with Benji she knew that Benji not only had a good reason for it but it was also a sign that he cared for her and was worried about her.

'I don't know what I want.' Ranko admitted, not noticing how she is crushing the half eaten chocolate bar with her hands. 'Everything that I did was laid in front of me by someone else, the old fart forced me to be a martial artist, I am doing that for so long that I don't know if I like it or not, then he forced me to be Akane's fiancée, I was forced to go to school in Nerima, forced to learn odd techniques from the old ghoul, forced by my pride to learn those stupid martial arts like the tea ceremony, after Benji appeared in my life he tricked me into thinking by myself, to see things from a different perspective, not only think in simple terms as a martial artist jock.'

Ranko moves to take another bite of her chocolate when she notices that she broke it into several small pieces, taking few pieces from the wrapping she eats them. 'After that Benji quite much left me to learn by myself, but giving me pointers and gently leading me to the right path, but is something that I wanted? I guess that yes, isn't like he can force me to anything that I really don't want to do it…'

Ranko swallows the chocolate that now tasted slightly bitter as she realized something. 'Wait…he is right after all, I protest and say that I don't want to do something, but I always give in and do it. I said that I didn't want to be Akane's fiancée but used it against Shampoo, I said that didn't want to go to school but now I not only go to school but look forward to do it, I never had any control, I thought that I had it.'

Making a ball with the wrapper and the broken chocolate Ranko throws it in a trash can. 'Even not forcing me to anything I always give in and do what Benji tells me to do.' Ranko thought seriously. 'And I know that he never tells me to do something bad, and that is why I always do what he says, but before I always done what the others wanted willingly or not. What I called my decision was only doing what the others wanted me to do. And even now I am doing what Benji wants me to do; the worse part is that I know that he is right about this too. I can't keep asking him to think on things for me, to take responsibility, the blame for my actions. But when I tried to help him he told me to listen to him and stay away, why he is so contradictory?'

Putting her head on her hands Ranko feels tired and confused. 'He said that he wanted me to have a peaceful life, but he also told me to think in what I want to do. But I don't know what I want to do.'

"Ranko?" A familiar voice took Ranko from her troubled thoughts. "Kotone-senpai?" Ranko said looking up. "I thought that was you." The other girl commented. "There aren't many girls with that hair color." Ranko chuckled and scratches her head. "So why you are sitting here all by yourself looking so depressed?" Kotone asked to Ranko.

"I had an argument with Benji." Ranko answered. "And he told me some truths, the worse part is that I know that he is right, but he is also contradicting himself." Kotone nodded understanding. "Well let me sit here." She said sitting next to Ranko. "I don't know Tachibana-sensei as well as you do, but clearly by your words and what I know from him is that he worries about you. So what he told you?"

"He told me to start thinking on things by myself, make my own decisions, think in what I want to do with my life, that I am too old for him to hold my hand, taking me to places and making the decisions for me, that I had to get responsible." Ranko answered. "But in a previous argument he told me that he wants me to have a normal life and not get involved in his business."

Kotone nodded in silence. "Well it is a bit contradicting." She commented. "But things are different since that first argument right?" Ranko nodded confirming. "Yes, there are some serious changes since then." Ranko answered. "And now he tells you to be more independent." Kotone said. "He is right in both ways you know? Tachibana-sensei is an adult, a man, he has things that he doesn't want you to see, and you wouldn't like of having him poking in your love life would you?"

"No." Ranko answered embarrassed, inwardly telling herself that Benji was the one who she wanted to have a love life with. "I think that what he is trying to tell you Ranko is that is about time for you to start spreading your wings." Kotone said seriously. "You are a sophomore now, it is about time for you to start thinking about college, your future, he is right he can't tell you to do this or that deciding on your future, and he doesn't want you to have regrets. The baseline of what he is telling you is that you can be independent and still count with him to help you when needed."

Kotone stretched her arms. "You mentioned in the club that you two have a cousin right?" she asked to Ranko. "Yes, Nagisa, she is six years old." Ranko answered. "Why you are asking?"

"Try seeing things on his perspective for a change." Kotone said. "He isn't only your guardian, you are a teenager, pretty independent and self-supported, now he is the guardian of a six years old girl, she is totally dependant of him, she can't cook for herself, she can't get a party time job, she can't walk alone in the streets, she can't make important decisions, resuming she is very high maintenance, he can't give that kind of focus to the two of you. He has to set priorities, Ranko she needs him most; you also should help, being an example for her, isn't hard for him to take care of you both? Support both of you?"

Ranko nodded in silence, she never heard him saying anything like that but she could imagine that wasn't all that easy. "While growing up isn't easy, it isn't bad either." Kotone added. "Think about your likes and dislikes, take your time to decide what you want to do in college, but in the mean time improve yourself, make decisions about yourself and what you want, if you are in doubt I am sure that he will listen and help you out as long you also try thinking by yourself."

"But I don't really know what to do." Ranko said. "There is a part of my life that isn't all that simple; it isn't only about college or independence." "And you don't want to talk about it?" Kotone asked. "Yes, it is also something delicate and troublesome." Ranko answered. "It isn't that I don't trust on you senpai, I just don't speak about this to anyone."

Kotone nodded understanding; everyone has things that they don't share to anyone. "Look Ranko, from what I heard from you, the best that you can do is not let that last issue weight so much in your life." Kotone said. "It doesn't matter what it is, can't you find a way to make it work in your life? And if you don't speak about it to anyone, why don't you speak with your brother, he knows about it right?"

Ranko nodded confirming. "Then see if he can do something to help." Kotone continued. "He after didn't took you from your abusive family? I am sure that he will help you with any other serious issue that you can't deal with on your own. You are not alone, you have him as well your friends, maybe one day you might tell us what is this issue that bothers you, who know we might actually able to help with something."

"Thank you senpai." Ranko said with a smile, and added to herself. 'While I don't think that you girls can help me with this curse, your words really make me happy.' "I guess that asking Benji about that might help me with everything else."

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Chie hands to Benji a leather covered presentation folder. "I finished the design and the project of the garden." Chie said to Benji while they walk on the captured house. "It is meeting all the regulations and safety requirements, as well with some personal additions that I thought that would be useful."

"What about the location?" Benji asked while scanning through the documents and blueprints. "Fuuka told me that there are some terrains in this block that are vacant for a while now, as well some empty houses." Chie answered. "And I do believe that with a proper offer some of the neighbors would accept selling their houses. You said that wanted the garden to be located as near as possible from this base."

Benji nodded confirming. "You can check on the prices and terrains." Benji said closing the folder and handing it back to Chie. "I already did that." Chie replied. "With two hundred thousand dollars we can buy the two lots behind the base and the third one from the right in the back counting from the house. With more three hundred thousand we can get the two houses from the right of this one, and breaking the inner walls between the six lots we will have a terrain that rivals the size of the school's sports field, of course ignoring the houses."

"You are sure that you weren't a secretary?" Benji asked teasingly. "You are four steps ahead of me on this project." Chie chuckled. "While I am fitting the role right now I am just eager to get the garden started." Chie replied. "Well then you go ahead and get the terrains, make the purchase in the name of that company that I gave you." Benji said.

"Understood." Chie replied. "Should I start researching for the construction crew and make an estimative of the construction and the material?" "Yes." Benji answered. "And don't forget, nothing other than the best." "Yes sir." Chie said with a smile. "By the end of the week I will have a preliminary report on the terrains and the expenses."

Chie moves to the office to make the calls and Benji moves to the kitchen. "You know she is so efficient that she scares me." Eri commented appearing from her chosen study room. "Where did you find that one?"

"She is the fish girl's mother." Benji answered. "Her help is smoothing things here a lot." Eri nodded agreeing. "Even Fuuka is lively lately; all that babysitting was draining the life out of her." Eri said. "I knew that finding another adult for the pack would be beneficial." Benji commented. "And your studies?"

"Moving okay." Eri answered. "It is annoying to study, but in the bright side I learned that I didn't forget much of what I have learned, so the entry exams might be easy to pass."

"That is good, once in college you will be able to get more free time." Benji replied. "Benji it is medical school, it might be even worse than now." Eri commented with a smile. "But it won't be as intense as now, at least then I will be studying to get a diploma."

Before Benji could reply his phone rings. "It is Ranko." Benji commented knowing by the ring who was calling. "So how is the princess?" Eri asked, Benji could easily notice the displeasure on Eri's voice, he knew that Eri wasn't fond of Ranko because the two incidents and how Benji treats her.

"A bit troubled but when you consider everything is just natural." Benji replied. "You could try being less unfriendly to her." Eri turns her nose at the idea. "I don't like her." She said seriously. "She doesn't treat you as she should and doesn't give you the value that you have."

Benji sighs while Eri walk away; picking the phone Benji answers it. "Yes?" Benji said when the line connects. "Benji you have time to talk with me?" Ranko asked. "I was thinking and I wanted to discuss about 'that'." Benji knew what 'that' was; it was their way of referring to the curse in a way that anyone else listening wouldn't know what it was.

"I have time." Benji answered. "Where you want to talk?" "Someplace private would be good, somewhere we can openly speak about it without worries." Ranko replied. "I have a good place for that." Benji said. "Meet me in this place in half an hour, get a pen."

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"What is this place?" Ranko asked to Benji while looking at an untended and clearly empty three stores house in a rather deserted area of a very desert neighborhood. "Well I call this of 'nothing else to do'." Benji answered. "It is what I do when I have absolutely nothing else to do, you can think about it as a last resort hobby."

"An empty house in a poorly located neighborhood?" Ranko asked in disbelief. "Fixing the small internal damages inside gives me something to do." Benji answered unlocking the door of the house. "And is a good place to talk to someone without meeting anyone else."

"Couldn't you clean this place up?" Ranko asked coughing at the cloud of dust that opening the door rose. "If I had time I would." Benji answered. "Isn't like I have time to get so bored that I don't have nothing else to do than fix up this place. It is like when you are slightly hungry and you get a closed snack and then the hunger is gone, you keep it there for a long time and it is still gone."

"I didn't understand what you meant." Ranko said. "Happens to me sometimes, I feel like eating something, I get a bag of chips and put on my desk, but even before I open it I am no longer in the mood for eating." Benji replied. "This house is like that bag of chips."

"I will pretend that I understood so we can move to the serious business." Ranko said seriously. "I was thinking, and thinking, then thinking more, hard enough to get a migraine." Benji opens his mouth and Ranko cuts in. "And don't start saying that just months ago I would get brain damage because of that."

Benji chuckled and saves the line. "Mou." Ranko said with a small smile. "Anyway I realized that until I do something about the curse I won't be able to clear a path for my future."

"And what is the something about the curse?" Benji asked. "I have a couple of mages helping me out but until now we didn't learned anything that could counter or cure the Jusenkyo curse." "No cure?" Ranko asked slightly depressed. "I said 'until now'." Benji replied. "There are few other interesting topics about it but they are quite vague."

"What you mean by interesting?" Ranko asked seriously. "According to some books there is a period of time after you are cursed that if you are doused or cursed with water from a different spring the curses get mixed." Benji answered. "Also that deliberate exposure of spring water limited to certain body parts will affect only that part of the body."

"Any example?" Ranko asked confused. Benji frowned and runs his hand on his hair. "For example if just after I got cursed I fell in the spring of the drowned cat instead of being a werewolf I would be a werecat." Benji answered. "Or if in my cursed form I soak my tail in the spring of the drowned twins I would become a two tailed wolf or werewolf. At least is what I understood from the books."

"I don't see much of a benefit from any of the two situations." Ranko commented. "Well I like cats." Benji replied. "And any male with a polluted mind would consider the use of the water of the drowned twins in a certain body area." "I will pretend that I didn't hear you say that last sentence." Ranko said. "Anything else?"

"Well there are legends about two items that lock and unlock the curse." Benji answered. "It isn't a cure, but one of the items splashes you with cold water that locks you in the cursed form so you can't change with warm water, the other makes warm water that releases the lock on the curse of the first item. So if you like of your cursed form and don't want to change the first would prevent accidental and deliberated changes with warm water."

"And if you don't like it and are locked in the cursed form the second removes the lock so you can change back." Ranko said understanding. "It seems like the kind of thing that the Amazons would use to punish people." Benji nodded agreeing. "I don't know if there are more uses for those or if someone with imagination can alter curses with it." Benji added. "But I have a theory that if we had those instant spring bags and those items we might be able to reverse or lock the instant curse."

"And effectively creating a cure." Ranko said with hope. "With instant drowned boy and the curse locking thing we could remove the curse from you." Benji scratches his head. "Well I am not so sure if I want to be cured." He said. "I got used to being a werewolf, besides it is nice to have the enhanced stamina, if I was only human I wouldn't be able to do half of the stuff that I do in a daily basis, but you are right with those two we could remove your curse."

"But we don't have any." Ranko replied. "And it is just a theory anyway." "And I noticed that you aren't so sure of the removal either." Benji said seriously. "Can't hide it from you can I?" Ranko asked. "You said 'remove the cure from you,'." Benji answered with a smile. "This made me realize that you aren't sure of removing the curse from yourself."

"I don't know anymore Benji." Ranko said in a sad and confused tone. "I have been a girl for so long, my life is so much better than when I was a boy, when I change to male recently feels wrong, I don't even acknowledge the face in the mirror as mine anymore, I don't want to lose what I have now."

Benji gently hugs Ranko. "I know how you feel." Benji whispered. "Is the same with me and that is why I don't want to leave Hinata or get my curse removed." Ranko holds on Benji's shirt. "I am tired of being afraid of being splashed with something warm and changing in front of everyone." Ranko cried. "I am tired of dodging my friends and lying to them, I don't want this, but I don't want to lose them either. There isn't anything that you could do?"

"I don't know Ranko." Benji answered gently running his hand on her hair. "But I will look for something, anything that might help." He can't promised anything else, he don't want to make a promise that he wouldn't be able to fulfill, so all that he could do was make that vague promise and hope that is enough to comfort the crying girl.

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Face down on his bed Benji wishes to turn his cell phone into scrap, but he knew that whoever was calling him in the middle of the night had a good reason. "Hello?" Benji said when answering the phone in the darkness, he could feel Nagisa stirring against him, once again the girl slipped into his bed in the middle of the night.

"Benji you are fully awake?" Tsuruko's voice asked from the other side of the line. "As much I don't want to." Benji replied rolling over carefully to not disturb Nagisa. "What is wrong Tsu-chan? It is past three in the morning." "I need your help." Tsuruko answered. "I can only count on you, so can you come to our hotel here in Kyoto as soon in possible?"

Benji sits up in the bed and rubs his eyes with his free hand. "How well armed I should be?" Benji asked seriously. "You won't need anything; you can bring whatever you feel comfortable with." Tsuruko answered. "It is a very delicate tracking operation, so having your enhanced senses will truly help me."

"Okay, I will get Nagisa into Ranko's bed and then wash up." Benji said. "I will be leaving in half an hour, is that soon enough for you?" "Yes." Tsuruko said in a gentle tone filled with gratitude. "I will be waiting in the hotel for you, thank you for coming in such short notice."

Benji smiled and fixed his hair with his free hand. "Hey I told you that all that you had to do is ask." Benji replied. "You got lucky that tomorrow is a holiday and I don't have to go to school."

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Now wearing a pair of biker's boots, black denim pants, a black leather belt, a dark blue long sleeved t-shirt, and a worn out black leather jacket Benji stretches while walking to the parking lot. "Man one day these late night calls will kill me." Benji commented in Portuguese. "But knowing her she has a damn good reason to be calling me this late, she did sound quite worried."

Benji pulls a pair of black leather gloves and puts them on; he walks towards the Yamaha while adjusting the gloves and tightly closing the wrists of the jacket. Riding on the bike Benji makes a final checklist. 'Left note on Ranko's nightstand, left note on Ranko's bedroom door, left another note in the fridge, three more in Ranko's drawers including the panty drawer, one glued on her forehead and lastly one on Motoko's door, left one message to everyone in the pack on their mails, and left one week worth of food for Meiko, so things should be okay if I take longer than what I planned.'

End of the chapter thirteen:

Motoko's grades: In the manga it only says when she get the result from the exams to Todai that she is bad in math, but based in her background I thought that she would also have some problems with English.

Games as homework: As told in the story I developed and trained most of my English with RPG video games and several other types of games all in English since hardly any game is translated to Portuguese, so by need I leaned, then added to two and a half years in a language school, plus speaking English with my uncle's wife who doesn't speak English helped even more, after that fics, movies, games and other things in English helped me to improve my English (I won't deny that isn't perfect, I am after all still improving and learning).

I thought that making Motoko play video games would give her an escape valve as well be fun, the bonus is that she can practice her English, even in the present when I play something I occasionally find a word that I am not familiar with and have to look it up. And for any one curious the game that took me three years to finish was Chrono Trigger, and it was as told in the story, I played every now and then, more than once my brother did something stupid and I lost my saves and had to start over, I remember very well that I finished it in a new year's night, the satisfaction of finishing the game was shadowed by the empty sensation of the realization that I had finished something that took me so long to finish, left me seeking for a new game to fill that void.

Translation of lyrics: My English teachers in my former high school did that as exercise for the students, here in Brazil schools teach so little, but so little that is bellow the basic, at least she tried to make us learn a bit more with that kind of exercise. So I thought that would be a nice idea to use in the story as a warm up exercise, as well fixation exercise helping the students to learn more words.

Meeting: another scene to the pile of 'not came as I wanted' pile, the idea was having the vice-principal questioning Benji about visiting Chie's house, as well living in the Hinata-sou, but the vice-principal wouldn't be a pervert, just a asshole.

The scene would focus on Benji's distaste and disregard over how the school impose things over the students, I red in the wikipedia that schools can even order a suspended student to stay home against his will and the student have to obey, well that and many more things, as a western I find that kind of things hard to swallow.

The camera conversation doesn't have much or base, specially the chat with Toshiko, the two brands were selected because I know that they are some if not the best brands for cameras in the market. I am not sure if a school would allow the purchase of cameras that expensive, but the named clubs would require or need them. Let's remember that the story happens before digital cameras were cheap and easily available.

Club field trip: Motoko goes in one with the kendo club early in the manga, and since Ranko is part of the cooking club it is natural that they would go to someplace that makes some type of food. The permission slip is something that I believe that any school all over the world has, it shows that the student's parents or guardians allowed the student to participate of the event.

Ranko: I am trying to develop her some more, so to do it I first need to make Ranko/Ranma less dependent of Benji's decisions, at least most of the time, and as well show some inner troubles that she is having with her life.

Kotone-senpai: The president of the cooking club, average girl with a larger than average love for cooking, since I was going in circles with Ranko thinking by herself I thought in adding some external force to guide Ranko, since I am using Motoko for that all the time I thought that would be better to be someone else, a someone else with a more normal point of view and more experienced with normal life.

Chie: In one sentence, never underestimate at a determinate and motivated woman. She jumped head first on the plan of making a kindergarten for the pack and is taking the planning and measure to make it happen very serious, and as a experienced mother she can deal with the 'cubs' with much more ease than Fuuka alone.

The values of the land mentioned are just guessing, well I think that an exaggerated guess, but the value of land in Japan is supposed to be higher than in here, so half million for a total area sports yard with track and field, one soccer and one volley fields, and lastly a indoors pool, is a fair amount, but once again I might be wrong.

I know, lots of space, but that isn't just for the kindergarten, there will be other things there that will be named in the proper time (read when I decide on what it is). The company is something that I made to hold the ownership of all the real state of the pack, after all it is more reasonable that a company expending at least half mil to build a kindergarten than a private person doing the same.

Nothing else to do: Well I needed someplace where Benji and Ranko could talk without anyone walking in the middle of the chat or hearing them, so I came up with Benji having a slightly run down house as a really side project of his. More details about it later if it appears again.

Curse and theoretic cures: Even in a world filled with magic is hard to get details of everything, especially something as shady as the Jusenkyo pools, so the cure won't be so readily available. As everyone must have figured the two items are the open water kettle and the whatever named ladle (okay I forgot the name of the damn thing).

As theorized mixing instant spring and the locked water would result in a virtually permanent change or cure depending of the spring, and I do have a theory that heating cursed water would change the trigger of the curse, I might follow this one later. Anyway, I also think that mixing the open water with an instant spring might also result in a permanent change, maybe a curse or permanently changing the person into the cursed form, but I am not sure of this theory. I will explore some of the theories later in the story.

Nagisa: it isn't uncommon for kids on that age move to the bed of their parents or of someone else of the family.

Tsuruko: I am not telling now.

I was forgetting, since the extra part bellow the author notes aren't much of an extra anymore I am thinking on a nice name for it, if anyone has a suggestion it would be welcomed, you can PM me about it or write it on a review.

………**Extras………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………**

Two days before Tsuruko's late night call

In the home economics classroom also the cooking clubroom Ranko is whisking some egg whites in a metal bowl. "Ranko! Ranko!" A pair of the club's new first year members called the orange haired girl. "What?" Ranko asked without much interest, she is on the middle of making chocolate mousse, and for her other than Benji nothing else is more important than chocolate.

"What is your relation with Aoyama-senpai?" the girl on the right with long and straight black hair asked. "You two have lunch, come to school and even go back home together almost every day."

"We are friends and live in the same pension." Ranko answered while adding sugar to the foamed egg whites and resuming whisking them. "Just that?" The girl on the left with short brown hair asked. "What were you girls expecting?" Ranko asked in a plain tone. "Hot lesbian action?"

The two girls blush madly at Ranko's words, but they didn't denied them either. "And with Tachibana-sensei?" the two asked as one. "Hello? We are kin." Ranko sneered. "He is my brother. And why you call him Tachibana and call me Ranko? ...Wait, you don't want to spoil your fantasies right?"

The two girls squealed as Ranko's tease hit dead on the target. "Ranko you have to admit that it is confusing having two Tachibanas here." Riko commented. "Remember when Kasuga-sensei called him in lunch last week?" Ranko nodded, she remembers it.

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"Tachibana!" Rei Kasuga, the physics teacher called when entering on the cafeteria. "Hai?" Both Benji and Ranko said turning at the woman. "I mean the male one." Rei said to the duo. "Be more specific next time." Benji commented. "What you need Kasuga-sensei?"

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"But she was the one to blame, if she said Tachibana-sensei I wouldn't have turned." Ranko commented. "That is true." Riko replied. "So how is the mousse going?" "It is too complicate for me to be sure that will turn out fine." Ranko answered. "And Benji said that making sweet mousses are easy."

"Maybe he has a different recipe." Riko commented, the two freshmen look at Ranko and Riko. "Why you don't call him and ask his recipe? He should still be in the school." "Good idea, keep whisking that." Ranko replied handing to Riko the bowl and the whisk.

The two girls see Ranko pulling a red foldable cell phone from her pocket and speed dialing. "Benji." Ranko said when the line connects. "I am making chocolate mousse and it is hard, you said that was easy so how you do it?"

Ranko gets a pen and a piece of paper. "Okay, two cans of sweet condensate milk, two of cream, chocolate of my choice." Ranko repeated while writing down the ingredients. "Melt the chocolate, mix with the condensate milk, whisk the cream until it is whipped, then mix to the chocolate milk mixture, mix carefully until it is a homogeneous mixture, the sitting in the fridge until it is hard, either fridge or freezer. Okay, sounds much easier than the one that I got. Thanks. What? Fine I will make you a lime one? Two recipes? Isn't that too much? Ah…you do weight two times more than I do."

Ranko closes the phone. "His recipe is way different than the one from the cooking book." Ranko commented. "It does sound easy to make." "But I don't think that we have the ingredients for that." Riko replied. "And that is why we have freshmen." Ranko said with a smile. "You two girls will go out and buy eight cans of condensate milk and eight of cream, as well four bar of milk chocolate with nuts on it, and ten limes."

"We have?!" the two girls whined. "Yes, it is tradition of the cooking club." Kotone said from behind the two girls. "When there is need for more ingredients during the activities the freshmen are the one nominated to go buy it. Ranko did it all the time last semester, she still holds the record of fastest run to the grocery of the club."

"Here is the money." Ranko said handing to the girls a ten thousand yens bill. "It has more than enough for everything, just in case that is more expensive than I thought, and bring the recipe." "Hai…" The two whined taking the money and leaving.

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"When you are going to eat that mousse?" Ranko asked to Benji while handing to him a large plastic container filled with the requested mousse. "Later today." Benji answered. "Well I did three recipes of this one so the girls of the cooking club also had some of it." Ranko commented while Benji places the mousse inside his backpack.

"So it was easy to make?" Benji asked leaning back on his chair. "Yes, so easy that I felt stupid for trying the recipe from the book." Ranko answered. Benji chuckled. "I am not sure if the recipe that I gave you is a standard one but is the one that my mother makes, so is the one that I use, well hers if for passion fruit mousse but it can be changed to any fruit." Benji commented. "How was the chocolate one?"

"Good." Ranko answered. "She ate nearly everything!" Riko exclaimed from the door of the teacher's lounge. Benji chuckled while Ranko glares at her friend. "Anyway Ranko you don't have to wait me today." Benji said. "I will drop by Fuuka's today." "As if you don't drop by there everyday." Ranko replied casually. "But I can understand that they need extra attention."

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Motoko sits next to a wall in school dojo, taking a deserved break from training. Wiping the sweat from her face and neck with a towel she relaxes, the meeting would end in few minutes, she could afford to relax and let it end with her resting.

"Aoyama-senpai." Motoko looks up and sees one of the sophomores looking at her slightly nervous and with three more girls behind her. "I…I mean we are curious about something." She said with the other girls holding on her clothes. "And what is that thing?" Motoko asked. "I am not taking disciples or interested in dating a girl."

The four girls blush at Motoko's words. "Actually we wanted to know your relation with Tachibana-sensei." The girl replied. "More than once you were spotted talking to him casually or even riding with him on his bike. Are you two dating?"

Months earlier Motoko would have an outburst followed by a harsh answer to cover he embarrassment, and now she just blush at the question. "No we aren't dating." Motoko answered seriously. "He is a married man, I would never do something as dishonorable as seeing a married man."

"Then why you are so familiar with him?" The girl asked. "We live in the same pension, so before he started to teach here we were acquaintances. So when I ride with him is because he offered to take drive me home, is the same when he drives his sister, I speak with him casually because we are friends." Motoko answered seriously. "You girls know as well as everyone else that is a crime to a teacher date a student."

"But it still happens more times than the news tell." One of the girls behind the first commented. "And you said that the two of you were friends before he started to teach here, so if started before that."

"We are just friends." Motoko said in a firm tone. "Stop believing in everything that you read on those cheap shojo manga, you really think that a love between a teacher and a student will flourish as it happens there? In the real world isn't like that, the school would destroy the teacher's life and reputation, try to cover up the whole thing, break the couple, all that to safe the school's reputation. And the couple would be reunited later and take everything as part of some trial of love as it happens in those mangas and live perfectly. The teacher would be marked, he won't find more teaching jobs, if he does find a job the co-workers will most likely make his life a hell, and the student will also experience a hard life."

"That can't be true." The girls said as one. "Really? Then why we never heard of a couple like that?" Motoko replied while standing up. "Sure all the things that I said sound good in a manga, it is romantic and dramatic, but in the real life things aren't like that."

"Now Motoko you are being a bit harsh." A girl with short green hair said to Motoko. "While it is true that ninety nine percent of the cases of romance between a teacher and a pupil end badly there are still one percent of cases where things work out." "Shinozaki-senpai." Motoko said with a polite bow. "If cases like that happen please tell me one."

Katia Shinozaki smiled and touches the tip of her bamboo sword on the floor and rests her hands on the pommel, she liked Motoko's objectiveness and seriousness. "My parents." Katia replied. "My mother was my father's art teacher in college, while they didn't dated while he was studying after his graduation they met several times and he confessed his feelings and that he was always had feelings for her, my mother said that she also got feelings for him, but that it grew after a certain point of his student life."

"I see, but they didn't dated while he was studying, or when he was hers student." Motoko said seriously. "I don't think that fully fits the setting that we are discussing." Katia nodded agreeing. "You are right on that, but it shows that it can start between a teacher and a student." She commented. "And since we are on the subject of romance, Motoko you know why Tachibana-sensei returns all the love letters unopened? A friend of mine was really heartbroken when he handed to her the closed letter and said that he couldn't accept her feelings."

"I think that opening and reading the letter means acknowledging and partially accepting the feelings of the sender." Motoko replied. "I know that it requires lots of courage to confess, but by returning the letters closed, without reading Benji won't know how much a girl feels or thinks that feels about him, and we have to admit that some girls can be pretty bold. In that way he won't have another source of temptation."

Katia nodded agreeing with the last statement. "Well I can understand that theory, but I think that is a bit cruel." Katia commented. "Ignoring the feelings of the sender just like that." "Senpai would you like to have your lover reading love letters from other girls?" Motoko asked. "If you don't have a boyfriend, please pretend to see my point. If you knew that your lover is getting and reading love letters from other girls how you would feel?"

"I guess that pretty angry." Katia answered. "And jealous." "Then that is how his wife must feel about this." Motoko replied. "Benji is married; by not reading the letters he is taking in consideration the feelings of the person that is more important to him, his wife." Katia nodded. "I can see your point; if I was Tachibana-sensei's wife I would be angry just by the fact that he is teaching high school girls." Katia commented. "Adding on it love letter, would be even worse."

'I really hate lying like this but I think that this will make things easier on Benji and will make the girls stop asking me questions about him.' Motoko said to herself. "Well now that I have something to tell to her." Katia commented. "Motoko, what you will be doing after the practice?"

Motoko smiled uneasy. "I have a pile of English home work and make up work to do." Motoko answered. "So I was going back home and try making the pile smaller." "Why so much work if you are Tachibana-sensei's friend?" the younger girls asked. "Because he doesn't treat me any different than any other student." Motoko answered seriously. "If anything he makes me work even harder than the others. We might be friends but now we are also teacher and student, so when he is in the classroom and most of the time in school he is my teacher and I am one of his students and just that."

"And that is how it should be." Katia commented. "Motoko I won't need much of your time, in the tops half an hour, it is serious." Motoko thinks a little and then answered. "Since is something serious I can make time for it and delay my study hour a little." "That is good." Katia said. "After you are done meet me in the gate." Motoko nodded agreeing.

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A short while later Motoko and Katia are walking towards the train station. "Motoko you know that I am graduating on the next spring don't you?" Katia asked. "Yes." Motoko answered. "That is why I wanted to ask you this." Katia continued. 'Please not a love confession; please not a love confession, not from senpai of all people!' Motoko thought in despair, she had her share of girls confessing and sending her love letters.

"I wanted to know if you can be the president and captain of the kendo club." Katia said seriously. "I have to start focusing more in my studies now that I am a senior."

"Thank god!" Motoko exclaimed with relief clear on her voice. "For a moment I really thought that you would confess to me." Katia chuckled at Motoko's words. "It is hard being tall, strong, attractive and strong willed isn't it?" Katia commented casually, she also had her share of girls confessing to her, she still gets confessions and love letters every now and then.

Motoko nodded agreeing. "Please don't think badly of me senpai." Motoko said. "I look up at you and think well of you, but I am not interested in a relation like that." "I know." Katia said chuckling. "I used to get tons of confessions in the past; even today I get some now and then. It is the curse of not going to a co-ed school girls with 'boyish' traits like us become the target of the affection of the others."

"Just last week four of the new students confessed to me." Motoko commented with a sigh. "I am not interested on girls, but I can't deny that they were cute." "It almost makes you feel like trying out doesn't it?" Katia asked casually. "Or wish that we were boys."

Motoko nodded confirming. "Well moving from confessions to my proposal." Katia said. "Can you take over the leadership of the club? You are the most fitting person to take over after me." "I am sorry senpai." Motoko said seriously. "But I can't accept it, being the captain would require me to participate of competitions and tournaments, I don't practice for that, and most of the girls look forward for winning those, I can't lead the club when I don't intend to fight in competitions. I practice with the club so I can keep my skills honed."

"I can respect that." Katia replied. "I am like that too, but I also join the tournaments for the prizes, I can't count solely on my parents to have a college found, it might sound wrong to compete only with the money prize in mind but I am realist, I am using my skills for my benefit, if wasn't like that much of the purpose of training that hard would be lost."

"To keep your body in a good shape is also a good motive." Motoko commented, months earlier she would get mad if hearing that, but after everything that she experienced she learned that she can't judge everything and everyone by her standards. "I can't deny that." Katia said chuckling. "And is also good in the case of self-defense."

"I am sorry that I can't take your place senpai." Motoko said. "I am already behind my studies in English, and I also have a strict routine of training for my family style, I don't have time or responsibility to lead the kendo club."

"It is okay." Katia commented. "I kind of expected an answer like this from you, but since you are my first choice for successor I had to try asking you, and there is still three other girls in the club that also fit the requirements. However I will resign before the festival."

"Why then senpai?" Motoko asked. "I want to enjoy the festival this time." Katia answered. "In the past two years I am the one who have to be the representative of the kendo club, so I end having to take care of organizing our event and managing it too, so this time I just want to enjoy, it is my last time in a high school festival. Besides we always do a food stand, and I am always the one cooking it, maybe this year the new president will come up with something else."

"I haven't even started to think on the festival." Motoko commented. "I think that I overheard my class's president and the vice chatting about the papers that they got from the council." "The festival is just six weeks away Motoko." Katia said. "Probably Monday all the classes will start planning it on the homeroom."

Motoko frowned a little; she remembers that Benji is the homeroom on Ranko's class. "I am a bit curious to see if Tachibana-sensei will suggest something." Katia commented. "He is always with something new and interesting in class, I think that this homeroom will have an interesting event too."

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"Misato-sensei I will be leaving now." Benji said to the much shorter female teacher, while shouldering his backpack. "I will be back for the night duty in one hour, I just need to take a shower and change to something else, I don't want to expend the whole night in this suit." "Okay Benji-sensei, I am quite sure that I will still be here by them." Misato replied with a smile.

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"I am here!" Benji called opening the door of the pack's house. "And I brought some dessert." "BENJI!" All the girls shouted while running at him. "Dessert!" Fuuka shouted doing the same. "Hello kittens." Benji said while the girls swarm around him, holding whatever piece of his clothes that they can reach. "And bye Fuuka." Benji said while Chie holds the mage's collar from behind and drags her away.

"No! Dessert!" Fuuka wailed, flailing and resisting while the spirit drags her away. "Act your age at least in front of the kids." Chie said to the mage. "Going all crazy for some dessert." "AH!" Fuuka exclaimed while Fuuka throws her into the living room and shuts the door.

"Now girls calm down." Benji said to the pack of girls. "I can't play with you right now." The whine of the girls echoes in the hall. "Chie mind in putting the plastic container inside the pack in the freezer?" Benji asked to the blue haired spirit. "It needs to be frozen before we can eat it."

"Sure." Chie replied taking the pack. "Why you can't stay longer tonight? You normally play with the girls even if only for half an hour." Benji sighed while loosening his tie. "I have night duty tonight." Benji answered. "Why you Japanese do that stupid thing anyway? Why not doing the same as the western schools, lock the whole place up and forget it until the morning?"

"Because in case of a student forgetting something in the school he or she can retrieve it." Chie answered. "It is about consideration, and it is also to prevent students from breaking in and stealing test answers, also thieves, students vandalizing the property or doing some something as courage tests, doesn't that mean that you will have tomorrow off?"

Benji nodded confirming. "Yes. Well at least part of it." Benji answered. "I just have to show up for homeroom, I plan on making the last homeroom a self-study period." "You shouldn't slack off just because you don't have any classes between those two." Chie said seriously.

"But I need time to get everything that I need; I was planning on shopping tomorrow after the homeroom." Benji replied. "I am running out of suits." Chie scratched her chin. "You should order them by the bulk." She commented. "What else you will be shopping for anyway?"

"Why you want to know?" Benji asked. "Because I have a feeling that isn't something all that important." Chie answered. "It is for me." Benji replied. "It is important for relieving my mental stress and fatigue; it helps me to keep myself sane." "You are going to buy mangas aren't you?" Chie asked with a sigh.

"So what?" Benji asked. "Trust me but if I wasn't a manga and anime fan I wouldn't be sane now." "You know by looking at you I wouldn't guess that you are an otaku." Chie said with a sigh. "From where I came otaku isn't an insult, but a denomination for anime and manga fan." Benji commented. "While I do know that in here is an insult and that the average otaku isn't like the average otaku from Brazil."

"As long you don't buy hentai I think that is okay." Chie said. "What you have against hentai?" Benji asked. "Hentai is bad for you." Chie deadpanned. "Not it isn't." Benji replied. "It helps to relieve stress and amuse." "You have Eri and Fuuka for that." Chie said seriously. "And that other lover that you haven't told us about."

"And how you know about her?" Benji asked. "Eri can smell her perfume on you every once and a while." Fuuka said leaving the living room. "Well while that is true." Benji commented. "Chie look at the time that you have been here, did I done that to either Fuuka or Eri?"

"No." Chie answered. "Exactly." Benji said. "Eri is too tired from studying and Fuuka from babysitting the kittens; I am also pretty worn from teaching. I am not that selfish to just come here and demand that from them whenever I feel like doing it. While I can't ignore the wonderful stress relieving and relaxing effects of that, no one of us is really up to the kind of section that we had in a regular basis." "And when one is the others aren't." Fuuka added.

Chinatsu tugs on Benji's sleeve. "What you mean by 'that'?" she asked curious. "I tell you girls when you are older." Benji answered with a smile. "Isn't anything worth of notice now." The girls nod pleased at his answer. "Now kittens go do what you were doing." He said. "Hai!" they exclaimed and run to the living room.

Chinatsu keeps holding on Benji's sleeve. "Why you keep calling us kittens when just Sachiko and Miki looks like cats?" She asked. "It is just a pet name for you all." Benji answered. "It sounds cuter than the alternatives." Chinatsu nodded understanding and then runs after her 'sisters'.

"It never ceases to amaze me how readily they obey whatever you say." Fuuka said in a tired voice. "And Chinatsu is more curious about things than the others." "I noticed that too." Chie commented. "She is just openly more curious." Benji said. "Well I am going take a bath; at least here the shower is in the way that I like it."

"You will have dinner after it?" Chie asked. "What is for dinner tonight?" Benji asked back. "Hamburger." Chie answered. "You mean hamburger in the western meaning of patty on bread with salad on it, or the Japanese way?" Benji asked. "The western way today." Chie answered. "We had Japanese way in the day before yesterday."

"Then I will have some." Benji said. "Ten will do it?" Chie asked. "It should be enough to dinner and late snacks during the shift." Benji answered. "Well I will go back to the grill." Chie said. "And check on Sumire, she can taste you even before you walk in the door, so I am pretty sure that she wants you by now."

"She is too attached to him." Fuuka commented. "It is natural." Chie commented. "Demons mostly register the first 'living' scent and image as their parents and caretakers, similar to birds; at least that is the gossip." "Sumire clearly makes it believable." Benji said walking to Sumire's room.

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Sitting on the floor with his legs crossed Benji stretches, Sumire cooed happily nested on his legs. "I know that you are tired but you shouldn't stretch like that during dinner." Chie said to Benji, all the girls, Eri, Fuuka and even Chiemi are sited around a large Japanese low table having dinner.

"Sorry." Benji replied. "It just has been too long since I worn a set of clothes like this, it is too comfortable." Benji is wearing a simple white t-shirt and a pair of dark blue shorts that cover his legs until his knees, and just that. "I missed this 'lazy home attire', I am happy that I had them made."

"Clearly is everything that you said that is." Chiemi deadpanned. "You also have your own set of those Chiemi, you aren't the one to speak ill of his." Chie commented. "At least his have more fabric than yours." "You aren't going to school on those are you?" Eri asked to Benji while he eats one hamburger. "No." Benji answered after swallowing. "I have separated a set of clothes for that. I just want to relax a little while I eat."

"Chie when Sumire started to grow teeth?" Benji asked to the older water spirit. "I noticed yesterday that it erupted." Chie answered. "She is developing fast isn't she?" Benji asked. "Based in what you told me about her, I think that she isn't." Chie answered. "Besides in babies the teeth start to grow after the first year, we need to buy her some biting toys."

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"Sorry that I am late." Benji said when entering on the teacher's lounge. "I got wrapped up with something back home." "Don't worry about it." Misato replied. "I am not leaving yet; I still have to finish stapling this so I can hand them in tomorrow's class. So what stalled you?"

Benji places his backpack now filled with his late night meal, a couple of two liters bottle of soda, a laptop, a CD carrier, his MP3 player, a book and a manga. "I saw a friend one mine with my godchild with her." Benji answered. "I couldn't help on chatting and pampering her a little."

Misato chuckled. "How old is your godchild?" she asked with a smile. "A little over one year old." Benji answered. "Babies are cute." Misato commented. "Now you go to the night duty room, I will finish this in half an hour and lock up the lounge. I will let you know when I am done."

"Okay." Benji replied. "You want a cereal bar or a chocolate bar? I brought some to eat." "I think that I will accept the cereal bar." Misato answered. "It will help me to endure until I can get home and have dinner."

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"Once again why we are doing this?" Motoko asked to Katia. "The other sophomores wanted to make a test of courage." Katia answered. "Here in the school?" Motoko replied. "There isn't any kind of spirit, ghost, entity or demon here." 'And I say that for sure since I study here for years and haven't picked up a thing.' She said to herself.

"Here between the two of us I think that s just an excuse to see Tachibana-sensei." Katia whispered to Motoko. "He is the one in night duty tonight." "I know about that already." Motoko whispered back. "He said that he would get back here when he dropped in the pension to get few things. So why we are here?"

"To make sure that they don't do anything stupid." Katia answered. "I heard rumors about few more girls trying to pull something like this too, my gut are telling me that we will find other girls and then we will need as many commanding people as possible to avoid a huge mess, so we are here to keep things down." Motoko nodded understanding and she would also see Benji, so it wasn't entirely a waste of time.

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Ranko sighed annoyed; as if wasn't enough for her to go to school during the day now she had to go back to it at night. "Why I have to go if you were the one who forgot your notebook in class?" Ranko asked to Riko. "Because you were the one who was rushing me so we could have that double fudge parfait after the club meeting." Riko answered in a flat tone. "It wasn't enough all that mousse?"

"Chocolate is never enough." Ranko replied. "And it is your fault for not packing before we went to the club, not mine." "Whatever, I just want company." Riko said. "The school is creepy enough at dusk; I don't want to see it at night all by myself." "Come on there isn't anything there." Ranko commented. 'And even if had Benji would most likely killed it by now.' She added to herself.

"You say that because you don't know the legend of the mirror spirit." Riko said seriously. "And what is that mirror spirit?" Ranko asked not really buying the story. "That either a demon or the spirit of a young woman appears in the reflection of any sheet of glass and attacks anyone near the source of the reflection, some say that she steals the soul of the victim leaving it as a soulless dead husk, others that she possesses the victim but after few days she has to leave and before leaving the victim she kills the victim making it look like suicide." Riko answered seriously. "Ranko I heard that there was girls from our school who commit suicide in the past."

"You are sure that it wasn't because some unrequired love, failing on college exams or some other banal reason like that?" Ranko asked casually. "Even I heard cases of people suiciding for those reasons in the past. More than one school had one or more students like that."

"Look I don't know the details but it is still fishy." Riko replied. "I don't know why you are so sure that there isn't anything in the school; there are things in this world that science can't explain." Ranko remained in silence, she knew that already, she was after all cursed and so was Benji, there was also some of the odd incidents of the pension as well several other things that she saw in the past, and she knows that Benji also knows a lot about mystical things, at least more than she does, but above everything she knows for sure that even if there was that mirror spirit Benji would have killed it.

"Wait a second." Ranko said seriously. "If the mirror spirit existed then our teachers would be dead by now. They do night duty every night taking out Sundays and holidays, if there was a mirror spirit they would be affected." "It only attacks teenagers." Riko replied. "Not adults."

"It sounds too convenient." Ranko commented. "Maybe is just something that the teachers created to scare the students to prevent them from sneaking inside the school at night. Ha! A spirit that attacks teenagers and not adults who walk on the school every night?" Riko remained in silence this time, Ranko had a valid point but she still wasn't so sure that the mirror spirit is just a myth.

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"So how are the kids?" An unknown familiar voice said from the inside the night duty room, Motoko doesn't recognize the voice at all, but Benji seemed to. "They are fine." Benji answered. "They stampeded on my way every time that I visit." "That is good to hear." The voice replied. "But why you didn't ask me about that Sumire girl?"

"I don't trust you with a child." Benji said in a flat tone. "After all that I learned since then my image of you crumbled to pieces and then turned to dust." Motoko peeks on the window trying to see what is going on, but other than Benji there wasn't anyone else there.

"Come on I am not that bad." The voice said. "Yeah right, I don't know a word of Korean but I am damn sure that Lin wasn't saying nice things about you." Benji replied. "And she is a grown woman. Just god knows what would happen with a child under your care."

"I admit that I am a bit rough on Lin." Shiaki said annoyed. "But she keeps making the same stupid mistakes time after time." "And that is why Sumire is safe away from you." Benji commented. "So you called just for that?" Then Motoko understands what is going on. "He is on the phone." Motoko whispered to the others. "His cell phone must have speaker phone."

"And I was thinking that he was speaking to a ghost." One of the other girls commented. "But who is Sumire?" "No idea." Motoko replied, and it was true, she hasn't heard about any girl with that name. "Benji!" Ranko's voice came from the direction of the school gate.

"I have to go now." Benji said to Shiaki, he picks the phone that was resting on a table and leaves the room. "Now what is Ranko doing here?" he whispered while pocketing the phone. 'I wish that I knew.' Motoko thought. "So what we do now if we follow him he will catch us." Katia asked to the others. "This place is quite good to hide, let's wait and see what happens." The girl that decided on the excursion answered, the others agree with her.

Few minutes later Benji returned to the night duty room followed by Ranko and Riko. "Why I have to go with you two to your classroom?" Benji asked, he didn't like to stay awake the entire night watching over the school, now having to move out of the night duty room was just more annoying.

"Riko is scared of some mirror spirit." Ranko answered while pointing to her friend with her thumb. "She keeps saying that if she is alone or if is just the two of us we will get attacked." Benji scratches his head and grabs the key chain with the keys for the school building.

"She is supposed to be more aggressive during the full moon." Riko added. "Many things are supposed to be more aggressive with the full moon." Benji commented. "And I don't think that there is anything here." Few minutes later while they walk on the empty and dark halls Ranko said. "I have to admit but this place is creepy at night."

"I don't really care." Benji commented, first he had a good night vision thanks to the curse, second he didn't felt anything odd coming from the school at night and it wasn't his first night duty night, and third he knew enough martial arts, spirit techniques and magic to deal with plenty of things.

Ten minutes and a shriek later Benji and Ranko return to the night duty room with Benji carrying Riko as if she was a sack of potatoes. "You know I really wanted to have a camera when she shouted." Benji commented. "Fainting of fear at her own reflection in the window, make sure that she doesn't hear the end of this any time soon."

"I plan on that already." Ranko replied with a grin, she is with the notebook that Riko wanted on her hands. "You have anything to wake her up in here?" Benji puts Riko down rather roughly. "We can try slapping her lightly or pinching her." Benji answered while taking a black marker from a drawer.

"And what you are going to do with that?" Ranko asked confused. "Well since she won't use a mirror for a while." Benji replied opening the marker and doodling on Riko's face. "Now that is so wrong." Ranko said with a devious smile. "Let me do it."

"Hey as her friend you shouldn't be doing this." Benji said in a serious tone. "As her teacher you aren't supposed to be doing it either." Ranko replied teasingly. "As if we care right?" Benji asked. "Right." Ranko answered.

"Yup they are kin." Katia muttered seeing the exchange. Motoko nodded agreeing. "Well then." Benji said now that they finished Riko's facial makeup. "You should be waking Riko and go back. That goes for you too kendo ladies." Then group tenses at his words. "How you knew?" A first year student asked. "The wind changed five minutes ago." Benji answered. "And you are smell like flower soap."

"I will leave a note for your homerooms to get you all some punishment duties." Benji added. "And for you Motoko I want a full translation of the entire lyrics of one of Kitsune's U2 CDs, at least ten songs, until Monday." "Noooo!!!" Motoko wailed at her punishment. "Now make it two CDs at least twenty songs." Benji replied. "Shinmei-ryu warriors shouldn't wail like that right?" "Right." Motoko sobbed before walking away.

Benji sees all the girls off and returns to the night duty room, he pulls his phone from his pocket, open it, and then presses two buttons on it. "Sorry for keeping you on hold for so long." Benji said to the person in the other side of the line. "First Shiaki called and then some students and then Ranko appeared here."

"It is okay." Chie replied casually. "While waiting I changed Sumire's diapers and gave her last bottle of the night. So back to where we left, I have finished with all the purchase details, the land and property is now yours, I got the permit from the prefecture to renovate and build in the land, we are free to start building now."

"That is good." Benji commented. "So we can finally get a hot spring in the base." "One thing that I was thinking is that you should give that place a proper name." Chie said. "I know that you can't just call it home but we can't keep calling it base." Benji frowned and runs his hand on his hair. "Naming it? I can see your point but I am out of ideas right now." Benji replied.

"Just keep that in mind." Chie said. "So what else I am supposed to do?" "First expand the house." Benji answered with a nod. "I know that right now the girls are using only three bedrooms, Fuuka and Eri two more, but there will be a day where the girls will want privacy and have their own rooms, and based on my luck I am fated to stumble in more girls."

"Considering everything you are right." Chie commented with a chuckle. "You seem to be a magnet for lost children, so enlarging the house, it can be done by joining the houses already build in the area, the hot spring can also be solved, there is plenty of those here so finding a hot water pocket is quite simple, if we don't find any getting a heater for inns will be easy."

"I also want strong fixed showers and not those shower heads with hoses." Benji added. "The girls also like of the fixed shower." Chie replied. "I will get both systems." "At least twenty bedrooms, new bedrooms not counting the existing ones, and with some sound proofing, things can get pretty noisy and I don't mean only that." Benji continued.

"Okay I added it to the list." Chie replied. "Suites too." Benji said. "Enlarging the kitchen, living room, and other common areas, the bedrooms should also be of a reasonably large size but not huge, but enough to have it fully furnished and still have space to move around comfortably."

"Okay, you are quite picky." Chie teased. "I am not Japanese and I am not fond of being crammed in rooms of the size of a sardine can." Benji replied. "Sturdy walls, making the walls around the property taller, to avoid perverts and other types of unwanted visitors."

"Okay that will be wise based in the fact that the pack is nearly female only." Chie commented. "Resuming you want lots of bedrooms, lots of room in the rooms, some recreation rooms, a sensible worry since you have ten active little girls, and a eleventh that is growing, study, office, library, well it will be almost a mansion, but less fancy."

"I am fine with that, we work in other details later." Benji replied sitting on the tatame covered floor. "How is Sumire doing? I hardly see her and when I do she is clingy and energetic."

"She is fine, a picture of health, now that she fully adapted to 'living' in the ways that we understand as living she is growing as fast as a child of her age." Chie answered casually, with a hint of happiness on her voice. "She does long for you a lot; she always seems to be looking for you."

Benji sighed and lies on the floor covering his eyes with his right arm. "You know it is kind of funny how I got that many daughters without even having a wife." Benji commented in a slightly dry and bitter tone. "And I am hardly around them."

"It bothers you to have them around?" Chie asked. "Not really." Benji answered. "It is just that I never thought about children, I don't even have a lover in the sense of loving someone and that someone loving me back, the girlfriend and boyfriend type, or even the husband and wife kind. I can't deny that I have lovers, but it isn't in that way."

"You have feelings for them but you don't know exactly what it is." Chie said. "Yeah." Benji replied. "I don't know, lately I am getting a kind of feeling." "What kind of feeling?" Chie asked seriously. "I am not sure if you are familiar with hentai games." Benji said. "I am not unfamiliar with them, but I am not all that familiar either." Chie replied.

"Well based on everything that is happening to me I am starting to worry about things." Benji said seriously. "I get the feeling that I might be heading to a bad ending." "Detail that for me." Chie said. "I am not familiar with that kind of games, I only know about them from gossips."

"Okay, what I mean is that in hentai games you normally follow certain paths to end the game with a certain girl as your girlfriend." Benji started to explain. "You have certain events to build love points or affection, you can call it in anyway that you want, the sex scenes happens when you have a certain number of points, it is a bonus, something to make it different from regular dating simulator games, well it is quite common in games to have a harem route, one that the main character keeps all the girls as girlfriends without choosing one of them, while it would be nice I think that I am heading to a path that is more uncommon."

"The indecisiveness bad ending." Chie said understanding. "A bad ending where because you fooled around too much with other women and lost all of them." "Yes." Benji replied. "Part of me want to keep this path, see if someone else new comes, other is telling me to change and focus only in one person, but I don't know how I feel about any of my lovers."

"So part of you wants to see if a someone will give a spark that you don't see or can't see in the ones around you right now. Is that right?" Chie asked. "Yes." Benji answered. "I know that it might just be me not seeing it on them." "Well you are badly situated." Chie commented. "I can understand what you mean, relations aren't easy and based in what I see you are surrounded by beautiful young women, it is hard to make a decision, there is also the genetic male trait of wanting to spread his genes around as much as he can weighting on the equation."

"And I also need someone besides me." Benji added. "It is hard to stand where I am standing all by myself, I am juggling with many things now, I hardly have time to focus on anything. Even if is just an illusion or a dream, having someone who I could share things would be great right now."

"I am just saying this to say, but I don't count?" Chie asked. "I am hearing you out and helping out in the pack." "I know and appreciate it." Benji answered. "But I mean sharing the things that I don't tell to anyone, you know the routine. I have people in who I trust and have a relation with that know more than others, but I never told to anyone everything that I keep in secret."

"I can understand that, but you know, you have many heavy secrets on you." Chie said seriously. "Just the pack and everything that you have done for the pack and the one that you guards is heavy enough to scare away most of the women that you could find, and I can tell that you have some even heavier secrets that you haven't told me about, how badly you think that one would take it?"

"Not well." Benji answered. "Adding that to everything it isn't a surprise that I am feeling like heading down on the bad path full speed. I don't think that even Tsuruko would accept it easily. I am so fucked up."

"Benji I didn't said that to make you feel worse!" Chie exclaimed. "I said that to you not do something stupid and tell to an outsider about you and the pack, it is dangerous, not everyone is like me."

"I know." Benji replied. "I just feel down, I fought hard, I killed, I suffered, but after all that hard work and problems I am just sinking deeper and deeper with problems. I don't have half of the freedom that I had before. I just don't know what else to do." "I know exactly what you need." Chie said seriously.

The line is cut and Benji wonders on what she means and why she hanged up on him. With a sight he closes the phone and thinks on what to do next, when you don't sleep the nights are so much longer.

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Benji is surprised when the night duty room's door is suddenly open. "Chie?" Benji asked confused seeing the water spirit walking in. "Why you are here and why you brought Sumire?"

"I brought you what you need." Chie said handing Sumire to Benji, the child eagerly stretches her arms and reaches towards Benji. "I need Sumire?" Benji asked while picking up the child that eagerly nests on his arms and rubs her face against his chest. "Yes, not exactly Sumire." Chie said seriously. "What you need is reassurance. Something that tells you that everything that you have done, still does and will do mean something; that your pain and sacrifice wasn't in vain."

Benji looks at Chie and then at Sumire who coos happily trying to hug Benji's neck. "See how happy she is?" Chie asked. "How content that you are holding her? Sumire is only a product of your efforts, so are the other girls, your kittens as you call them. Because of what you did they are happy now, they will live happy lives, grow up, fall in love, and just live a life. Eri is freed of being a slave and a sex toy, Fuuka, well Fuuka might complain and bitch but she is also happy, she is doing things that she wouldn't give herself a chance to do, and she are liking of more things that she lets us know. Put a hand on your heart and think really hard on the people that you had a positive influence on before you feel like you are heading to a bad ending."

Benji remained in silence, in a odd way Chie's words did bring him some kind of comfort and so did holding Sumire and feeling her little life that less than two months earlier was trapped in a endless spiral of fear and terror, and now living happily.

………**Sailor Moon twist part 5………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………**

"Michiru you are sure that the sample that you gave me wasn't tainted?" Ami asked to the green haired senshi. "Why you are asking me that?" Michiru asked back. "I am not a geneticist or any kind of expert but the sample doesn't look like anything that I saw in books and even on any know databank." Ami answered seriously.

"And how different from everything that you know it is?" Michiru asked; this was getting really good. "At first glance and even more detailed exams the blood is human blood, then there were at least three hormones that I never saw before, and two of them are some type of adrenaline." Ami answered.

"Two new types of adrenaline?" Michiru asked confused. "From what I could decipher highly specialized too." Ami added. "My simulations theorize that they enhance the attention and perception to levels so high that I can't even start to imagine the kind of things that someone can perceive on high levels of that adrenaline, the second type enhances the reflexes, it mean that the person can move so fast that as soon it notices something they are already moving to do something about it. I can't imagine what kind of drawback it has."

"It sounds extreme." Michiru commented. "The third hormone that I managed to process is the oddest of them all." Ami said. "What it does?" Michiru asked. "I don't know." Ami answered. "I didn't find any kind of possible purpose of it, and I am not even sure if it is a hormone, the sample was compromised Michiru, exposed to the air and dry, I don't know what kind of breakdown it happened on hormones and other substances on it."

"Okay, so what else was odd on it?" Michiru asked. "Well here is where it gets even more confusing; I found some canine features on it." Ami said seriously. "I am not sure but some of the cells looked like something between human and canine." Michiru remained in silence; it was indeed odd but when adding to what she saw in the church made some sense.

"Other than that I learned that the subject is from a male." Ami continued. "I had to ask my mother to help me on more detailed exams, we managed to narrow down the ethnicity of the subject, it is a European, Japanese, and Lebanese mixture, with few more intricacies that we couldn't detail, and the proportions of each bloodline is also beyond our capabilities."

'It matches what they were talking about.' Michiru thought. "And you found anything on the jacket? Anything that might have slipped in the first search?" Michiru asked. "No." Ami answered. "We checked for everything and other than Haruka's hair there wasn't anything there. So why you wanted me to test this anyway?"

"Makoto and I walked into an exorcism a while ago." Michiru answered. "While I think that they aren't related to the enemy I got curious about who are they." "I can understand that." Ami commented. "Anyway in the file that I gave you there are more details about the other samples and the male sample, I must say that they are rather unique, now that you mentioned exorcism they make a little more sense than before."

Ami stands up. "In my opinion that male might be a half-breed, at least based in the blood that I examined." Ami added. "Now I have to leave, I am still finishing the adjustments in the inners wands." "Sorry for bothering you." Michiru replied with a smile. "I just needed to know this." "It is okay; it helped to distract myself enough for me to come with the solution." Ami said.

'So demon and demon hunters.' Michiru thought while watching Ami walking away from the café where they were meeting. 'I guess that when you stop looking so closely to a detail you can see the whole scenery, we are magical after all, it was too simplistic to expect that just us had magic.'

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"Michiru what is wrong?" Haruka asked to her lover, when they are finally alone in their room. "You have been absent minded all day." "Haruka you think that we senshis are the only magic bearing creatures of this world?" Michiru asked seriously, if Haruka was worried and wanted to know then Michiru would tell her what was troubling her.

Haruka looks confused and scratches her chin lightly. "Well I never thought about it." Haruka said. "But have been a while that I wondered if there was others, well since whoever it was saved me and healed my wounds. Whoever he was he had to have some magic something on him, at least the medicine that he gave me was magical."

"You never said anything about medicine." Michiru commented. "It slipped out of my mind." Haruka said at her slip of tongue. "He made me drink some kind of medicine, it had a unique taste, but as soon it filled my mouth I felt much, much better."

"Well I guess that it sounds magical." Michiru commented. "I saw something with Makoto few weeks ago, I know for sure that there are other people with powers, different from us senshis, people who are out there facing demons and I don't know what else without having a guardian planet or resurrection on their sides."

"And it bothers you." Haruka said. "Yes." Michiru replied. "Part of me is mad because they never came forward and helped us in our fights, but then we never did anything for them either, and there is also the fact that I am quite sure that we would most likely treat them badly and suspect of them being part of some kind of evil empire trying to gain our trust."

Haruka let out a dry chuckle; she knows that Michiru is right about that. "We are too self-centered." Michiru added. "All that we care is the future that we are striving for, and for that to happen the world will suffer from that ice age that Setsuna told us that will come."

"And it would destroy everything that those people fight for." Haruka said understanding. "I can see why it troubles you. I mean after all in the Silver Millennium we lived in the Moon and in the other planets of the Sol System, Earth was an independent kingdom, now for the Crystal Millennium we will be on Earth, so those who fight for the sake of Earth will suffer."

Michiru nodded confirming. "Yes, there was harmony in the past, they were here and we were in the other planets and moons, now we will have to take over their planet." Michiru said. "Doesn't that make us just like the evil that we fight against?" "We have Mamoru in our side; he is the prince of Earth." Haruka commented. "But yes, no one is part of that kingdom anymore, I don't know Michiru, we also fight for Earth's sake, we don't even know if we will be alive when that ice age happens, as far we know we might even have tried to stop it and failed."

"It is confusing." Michiru said. "I don't know what is right anymore; things aren't as simple as before." "We just need more time and information." Haruka replied. "We ask to Setsuna about this tomorrow, I am sure that she will tell us something that will help us sort this. Of all nights she had to have a date tonight."

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In an exclusive restaurant

"It is nice to seeing you again Setsuna." Benji with silver hair and with his hair styled in a 'pretty boy' style said while sitting on Setsuna's table. "Thought I really appreciate having a more advanced notice." "Don't be so sour Kaede." Setsuna replied casually with a rare smile gracing her lips. "I have good news after all."

Benji straightens his suit's jacket and looks at Setsuna who is wearing a black skirt suit. "You did something with your hair haven't you?" Benji asked; Setsuna smiles and rests her water glass on the table after taking a sip. "I am surprised that you actually noticed." She said running her left hand on her long hair. "I cutted it two weeks ago and no one noticed."

"Considering that you removed around two inches of the tips and they regularly see you it isn't all that surprising that they didn't noticed." Benji commented. "And they don't check you out in the way that a male does." Setsuna chuckled, pleased with the compliment.

"And in the last time that I saw you, you had less silver in your hair. It looks nice but I think that ages you a little." Setsuna said. "Well enough with the flattery; even thought I like it. It is time to get down to business." Setsuna reaches to her purse and takes a large brown paper envelope folded over the bulge of the contents.

"You know that all those are supposed to be lost on fires don't you?" Setsuna said while handing to Benji the envelope. "Of course I know, otherwise why I would ask for you of all people to salvage them?" Benji answered taking the envelope and putting it inside his inner jacket pocket. "Trust me Setsuna these won't see public space."

"I know." Setsuna replied seriously. "But I don't like meddling with the timeline like this." A smirk traces Benji's lips. "Come on Setsuna what you and your friends do is meddling with the timeline." Benji said teasingly. "And in way worse ways than saving magic books from destruction."

"I know, I know." Setsuna said. "But there is some pretty impressive spells just in the tomes that I handed you today, in the wrong hands they can cause much destruction, I know that you aren't in that classification neither is your group."

"I know it is a sensitive worry." Benji commented. "But we need this, unlike you and your friends we don't have that kind of magic power, we need a different kind." "Just be careful with those." Setsuna said. "And as usual thank you for going out of your way to keep my queen safe."

"I won't say that is a pleasure." Benji commented. "She is too careless and too much of a klutz to protect, my best personal suffer to keep her unharmed, you know that she spilled a yakuza with a blueberry milkshake and nearly got herself killed three days ago?"

Setsuna sighed annoyed. "I will try to talk some sense to her." She said sipping her water. "And I will add another pair of tomes to the next maintenance fee, but I am running out of magic tomes that I can slip from their places without affecting the timeline, and I don't want to try doing the same with magic items."

"As temptating as it is to ask you to do the items I also don't think that it is wise either." Benji commented. "Let's do this, when you run out of books, you look for 'live' magic items." "You mean those with spirits sealed inside?" Setsuna asked. "Yes, I mean if the spirit is lost or destroyed with the item it is unfair to let them to be destroyed, the spirit gone forever." Benji replied.

"I agree with your point of view." Setsuna commented. "I will look into information about what happens to a spirit inside a magic item that is destroyed, it they are released from the item then we won't be saving them." "I am fine with that." Benji replied. "And I am not interested in cursed items, or evil items, unless those items weren't originally evil or cursed."

"We deal with that when it comes." Setsuna said. "I still have enough books to few more fees. So you will join me for dinner or I will have to eat all by myself here?" "Now it wouldn't be right to leave a lady of your beauty to dine alone in a place like this." Benji replied.

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"I am back." Benji called from the entrance of a house, taking out his shoes and loosening his tie. "Welcome back." A tall teenager girl replied walking towards the entry, she has short bluish black hair and is wearing a pair white socks, a pair of slippers, a black skirt and a white shirt and over everything a light green apron. "You look tired."

"This life is draining my life." Benji said taking out his socks and stepping on the cool wooden floor. "Nanami what are you fixing for dinner? It is smells good." "Lasagna with white sauce, Caesar salad, and grape juice, it will be done in ten minutes." Nanami answered. "You shouldn't drink that much soda. It is bad for you, and you told me once about the headaches that you had for excess of colorants in your system."

Benji sighed and smiled. "I don't know if I scold you or kiss you." Benji said teasingly. "But the dinner sounds delicious; I am just putting the new books away and changing to something else before dinner." "I would prefer the kiss." Nanami said with a smile. "And didn't you already ate out?"

Benji gently holds her head and lightly kisses Nanami's forehead. "The portions on those fancy restaurants are hardly enough to satisfy me." Benji replied. "Now to back to what you were doing." "Hai!" She exclaimed before moving back to the kitchen. "Koyume!" Benji called while walking down a set of stairs. A distant cry of 'Haaaiiii!' was his answer. He already knew where she was, entering on the underground library Benji said. "We got more books for the library. She said that she got that advanced charm book that we have been looking for."

"Now we should be able to make high grade shooting charms." Koyume said with a smile, running her slender fingers on her long black hair. "The tome of White Light is the ultimate source of the most powerful shooting spells even known by men; it should contain some seriously devastating wide area long range spells."

"Why I have this odd feeling in my anime warning sensor." Benji commented while handing her the envelope. "I think that is Gundam related or something." "Well in terms or appearance should be similar to some of the beam attacks from that genre of anime." Koyume replied while opening the envelope, seven books several times bigger than the envelope are taken from it. "Did we ask for the book of Irene?"

"I did." Benji said. "It sounded like a waste to lose that one, just because it is focused on wards and protection spells doesn't mean that we can't use them." "Fine what about this one?" Koyume asked showing to Benji a black book not bigger than a regular book, it is wrapped by a thin metal chain.

"That one looks familiar." Benji commented taking the book. "Where did I see a black book tied with a chain before? ...AH! This is the bible black! Koyume I want you to turn on the incinerator now." "What? But why?" She asked confused. "This is a black magic book, well demonic magic book." Benji answered. "We don't use this, I can't believe on her."

"But if is demonic magic it would be valuable to use against demons." Koyume said. "No it is not." Benji said leaving the library. He moves to a different part of the underground area and turns the incinerator on, then the takes the chain of the book and quickly scans it. "It is that one." Benji muttered. "Back to the fire then." Benji throws the book inside the raging flames and watch until it is fully consumed and turned into ashes.

He pulls his phone from his pocket. "Setsuna what you were thinking in giving me a demonic spell book?" Benji asked as soon the line connects. "Well as I am sure that you guessed it was a kind of test." Setsuna answered. "I wanted to see what you would do if I gave you that book."

"Even I am not crazy enough to mess up with demon spells much less sexcraft related ones." Benji replied. "You know the raw power of the act." "I know, I wanted to be sure that you know better." Setsuna said. "In that book that you just burned had spells that would allow you to control virtually anyone in the world, powerful love curses and charms, how to summon and control demons from what people would call the catholic hell. And you burned without a second thought."

"And how you know that I burned it?" Benji asked. "I placed a spell on it, when you threw it on the fire a token burned here." Setsuna answered. "As an apology for that trick I threw another pair of books in the envelope, they appeared after the book is destroyed. And the two extra tomes are very, very high grade; you will be pleased with them."

Benji sighed and hears Setsuna for few more minutes. "Benji!" Koyume exclaimed. "All of sudden the envelope ripped and inside it there was a tome of night and a tome of storm! They were supposed to be forever lost!" "And what kind of spells they have?" Benji asked seriously. "Every kind! Protection, shooting, summon, control, everything, every class, several types of spells in several different levels and grades, from beginner to highly advanced levels!" Koyume answered. "And the tome of storm alone has countless lightning related spells! Not adding other elements found in storms!"

"We exam them later." Benji said calmly. "Now we go have dinner. Later we think about the books and uses for the spells."

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Author explanation corner part 2:

Underclassmen club girls: Well I need someone to ask to Ranko and Motoko embarrassing questions so they were there for that. Based in what I gathered from the Japanese school system (which I might be wrong), graduations happen on the spring and the summer vacation start a new period.

While confusing (I am lost on this myself, somewhere along the way I lost the track of the exact line of thought) after the summer vacations everyone jumped one grade and new freshmen joined, so the new girls in the club are new girls in the school.

Kittens A.K.A rescued girls: I really had to come with a nice nickname for the girls, well each adult of the pack has a particular one, Benji calls them kittens, Eri calls them cubs, Fuuka, well Fuuka still haven't came with one yet, Chie uses whatever comes to her mind at the moment.

Fuuka and dessert: Woman and sweets, is there a need for more?

Hamburgers: Watching anime I several times came to see characters having hamburgers being composed of the patty with some salad and other stuff eaten on a plate as if it was steak, so I am calling that one of Japanese version (example Rozen Maiden's flower hamburgers, I know that it can also be served on a plate without a bun outside Japan, but Benji there doesn't so it is Japanese styled for him), the regular hamburger in a bun is western style.

Courage test: Common practice in Japan between young students or in schools, it is show in several animes; it is some kind of task of walking on a dark and scary area while few people are the ones to scare the ones taking the test. As mentioned in the story it was just an excuse to the girls spy on Benji.

Mirror spirit: I made up this one, I needed some kind of scary story that would make Riko scared of going to school all by herself, as mentioned might be only a tale to scare the students from sneaking on the school, here in Brazil there is a similar one called mulher do algodão (woman of cotton) that is used to scare the kids to not ask to go to the restroom all the time (the legend says that she appears in the bathroom and attacks students that go there alone).

Conversation with Chie: Eventually the stress of everything would catch up with Benji.

Hormones: I made up this too, since I am not a biologist and I don't know if wolves have different hormones than humans I made up the hormones since there has to be some biological changes other than appearance when you are a werewolf.

Magical people discussion and who own Earth: A sensible discussion when you think that the senshis aren't the only magical people defending the planet from threats. And as mentioned in the story the senshis (princesses) lived in the Moon or in their planets, not they live on Earth where in the past was a different kingdom, so the discussion becomes troublesome since the future that the senshis want might not be the one that the others want.

Setsuna's date with Benji: Secret.

Other girls with Benji: Secret.

Magic books: I made up the books more details later.

Burned magic book: Based on the magic book of the hentai game and anime Bible Black, black and demonic magic, not the kind that Benji deals with so to the fire with it.


	14. Tears for fears

Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic. This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Love Hina I don't own or any of the characters of those shows. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed: Benji Himura.

This story begins in the Ranmaverse somewhere in the middle of the events of the chapter thirteen, actually between the release of Hinako and the events of the Gamble King events.

In the Love Hina timeline in the manga it stars after the chapter twenty six but before the chapter twenty seven.

This is a crossover so both stories casts or at least part of them will interact and there will be changes on both stories and on the plotline of Outcast Ranma. For anyone following the main story this scenario doesn't follow the same 'timeline' from the main story, it works on the line that timeline show on the story is the original one.

"Text"= Talked sentences.

'Text' = Thoughts. 

-Text- = Sounds effects.

(Text)= Talked sentences in a foreign language as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: = Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

**Text**: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

_Text_: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

"_Text"_= Alteration in the voice, not in the tone but the voice itself.

Chapter fourteen: Tears for fears

Tsuruko smiled when she sees Benji walking past the doors of the hotel lobby where she was waiting for him. "You look tired." She said in an apologetic tone, while caressing Benji's cheek with her hand. "I am sorry that I called you this late, but it is really important." 

"It is okay." Benji replied placing his hand over his. "I knew that you would have a pretty good reason for calling me like this. What happened that couldn't wait?" Tsuruko's expression changed from worry and care for one of bitter sadness and distrust. "My husband left today for a business meeting." Tsuruko answered. "Normally I wouldn't care, well recently I would actually celebrate it, but I had this dream, and I woke with a feeling of dread." 

Benji gently pulls Tsuruko against him. "What you saw in your dream?" Benji asked wrapping his arms around her shoulders. "You and Junko joked about that." Tsuruko answered resting her forehead on his shoulder. "But in my dream I saw him with another man, and while I couldn't see the other man, I remember that they were planning something, and that I might get removed from the picture." 

Benji runs his hand on her hair. "It is okay, we will get them first." Benji whispered softly. "Benji let's go the room now." Tsuruko whispered back. "I need more comforting." 

* * *

Lying on top of Benji Tsuruko rest her chin on his chest, comfortable and happy, with a content smile on her lips she sighs pleased, four hours had passed since Benji arrived, it was in the middle of the morning but she didn't care, Benji was sleeping, recovering from the long ride and the intense hours with her, as well recovering from the stress of his personal life. 

She knew that was unfair of her call him so late at night and ask him to go to Kyoto, but even her had her frail moments, moments where she forgets that she is a swordswoman and is just a woman, originally she was going just hear his voice to calm herself, but when she heard his voice the determination to just hear him vanished and she felt the need to see him, knowing that he would treat her just as a woman. 

Tsuruko knew that Benji was quite aware of her past and her strength, and still treated her as a woman, well being more careful about certain things than with others, unlike everyone else who treated her as a case of nitroglycerin. She knew that Benji himself had his own set of dangerous traits, some were there in the first time that she met him, others gained before the second time that she met him, still he was less unstable than her. 

The fact that Benji was firmly ground to the ground even after everything that he went through impressed Tsuruko, she knew that some of her dangerous treats were acquired or worsened with her unusual experiences, with Benji seemed the opposite his unusual experiences made him keep his feet on the ground even harder than before. 

"How long you plan to sleep?" Tsuruko whispered softly. "I was thinking in a couple more hours." Benji replied with his eyes closed. "But you won't let me, right?" "Right." Tsuruko answered with a smile. "I am a bit bored and lonely now; I am recovered since I took a little nap, you in the other hand slept way longer than I did, even though your body seems ready for more." 

"I am mentally tired." Benji commented. "Physically I am okay." He stretches with Tsuruko on top of him. "I forgot to mention before and noticed sometime while we were at it." Tsuruko said while Benji gets more comfortable. "I liked that you removed your body hair, but it doesn't affect your war form?" 

"I asked to Eri about it, she said that shaving, waxing or any kind of hair removal treatment doesn't affect the fur in the war form." Benji replied. "But since I am from a different breed, I first tested in a small spot in my wrist; since when I changed the fur grew normally and when I changed back the hair was still gone I removed from the rest of my body. I am happy that I won't have to shave again, it is annoying." 

Tsuruko chuckled. "Come on it isn't all that bad." She commented. "You say that because you do every now and then when you need to." Benji replied playfully. "But I need to shave everyday." "I also shave everyday." Tsuruko commented. "You do know how I keep my hair down there." 

Benji nodded confirming. "So what you did?" She asked curious since his skin is nice and smooth. "Laser treatment." Benji answered. "Took a while but the result is worth, even if might not be permanent, I would take one section for year to get rid of them than shaving everyday." 

Tsuruko softly runs her hands on his chest. "Well I like the feeling, not that I disliked the hair, but it tickled a little." She commented. "What you prefer, if I removed or keep like this?" "Not so sure." Benji replied. "There is attractives in both, but for licking is much nicer without the stubs, but is up to you to decide." 

"I will give more thought about it, but I am pending to the removal." Tsuruko said. "How is Sumire?" "A bundle of energy." Benji answered. "Cute and lovely, Chie says that she doesn't give much trouble, but every time that I am near Sumire is always active and excited." Tsuruko chuckled. "I want to see that." she commented. "She does like you a lot." 

The pillow talk was nice, they savored it and now the pleasant silence that followed it, but both Benji and Tsuruko knew that they would have to face a less pleasant subject soon. Taking a deep breath Tsuruko decides to deal with it sooner and get it over with. "As you must have guessed I want to track my husband." Tsuruko said after moving from her place over Benji and sitting on the bed. 

Benji sits up and looks at her. "You can't trace him by his ki or something?" Benji asked seriously. "No, he suppressed it as you also know how." Tsuruko answered. "That is why I wanted and need you; he can't suppress his scent so you can track him down." "You have something with his scent?" Benji asked. "And please not a pair of socks, underwear or pants." 

"Brought a sweatshirt." Tsuruko replied with a smile. "I know that he worn it and his scent is there, I watched him wearing it and then throwing at the bedroom floor, I picked up and bagged it, the scent should be quite concentrate." "It will work." Benji said. "You want to start now or later?" 

"Sooner the better." Tsuruko answered. "I brought myself some disguise items and other clothes, so I won't be recognized." "Good." Benji replied. "Here is my plan for this thing." 

* * *

Benji waits for Tsuruko in a café, she arrives rather shortly, now wearing a light green dress, with her hair tied in a ponytail and instead of being greenish black as usual is reddish black. Benji smiled looking at the woman, wondering how a simple change of clothes can make her look so different and attractive, marking as another mysterious female only power, Benji pays for the tea and leave with Tsuruko. 

Holding on his left arm Tsuruko smiled and look up at him, it was almost like a date if she ignores the fact that they are out hunting her husband. 'Maybe dating a younger man isn't all that bad.' She thought while they walk down the busy street. 'Not that he is that much younger than me, what are three years of difference? And as more I think about it more I feel like I wasted my time not wearing western clothes, Benji really seems to like seeing me in a new outfit.' 

Tsuruko frowns lightly. "Anything wrong?" Benji asked in a soft whisper. "I just recalled something." Tsuruko answered. "You remember the times that you stripped me?" "Yes." Benji answered. "It is kind of hard to forget the few times stripping a woman as gorgeous as you." 

"Then you noticed that in the six times that we met and had sex I wasn't wearing panties, right?" Tsuruko asked. "I did…wait, you mean that it wasn't because you were going to seduce me and then have sex?" Benji replied. Tsuruko confirmed with a nod. "I don't own panties." She said slightly embarrassed. "You don't wear anything under a kimono; that is the tradition." 

"So you mean that you aren't with anything under that dress, doesn't it?" Benji asked, the idea made his nervous but was also arousing. "Yes." Tsuruko answered. "I first didn't realize but now I think that I need something under this skirt." "You need something under your skirt." Benji replied. "Then we will go to a lingerie shop or the nearest department store right now." Tsuruko nodded and they change their plans. 

* * *

"I normally don't say this but this experience was rather embarrassing." Tsuruko commented holding on a shopping bag. "How you can keep a straight face in the middle of a lingerie shop with several women staring at you while you pick up panties for me?" 

"Practice." Benji answered casually. "First in the past I had a girlfriend, second I have Ranko so in the beginning I was the one who bought her underwear, second I am the surrogate father of eleven girls of ages bellow ten, so I tend to go shopping for them. Besides isn't like I care about what the others think about me." 

"I have to admit that I liked how the others were jealous of me having you around helping me to select things, but why you answered when they asked you about what they picked up?" Tsuruko asked. "It would be rude to ignore them." Benji answered. "At least they didn't put them on and came asking me for an opinion." 

Tsuruko had to agree with that, it would be even worse if every female of the shop asked for Benji's opinion wearing the products; she sighed and changes the hold on the bag. "But I wasn't aware that there were so many types of undergarments." Tsuruko commented. "Selecting them is annoying." 

"Well women have a much wider selection for any kind of clothes than men." Benji replied. "For example you could wear a suit and no one would care, but if I worn a dress I would be called of pervert or a freak." "That is true." Tsuruko commented. "Still why I needed so many types of panties?" 

"Since you never worn then before, or at least since you became a teen or an adult, you need to try as many types to find the one that you like the most." Benji explained. "Few years ago I only worn boxers, but recently I traded the boxers for briefs because I wanted more support, they weren't as uncomfortable as they used to be." 

"So it is all about comfort?" Tsuruko asked, it was odd to get a lesson about female underwear from a male, but she was okay with it. "Well it is a main concern." Benji answered. "However there is other important factors too, appearance, functionality, what is the use that you have for them." 

"Use for them?" Tsuruko questioned. "What you wear when you have your period?" Benji asked. "Fundoshi." Tsuruko answered. "It is a bit troublesome to use with pads." "Because it wasn't meant for it." Benji commented. "Well most of styles of panties can easily be worn with pads, the one with lacy or other details can be used to seduce and enhance sexiness. There is several ways to use. You have to find the ones that work with you." 

"And how you found the ones that worked with Ranko?" Tsuruko asked. "A mix of plain and basic cotton panties in light colors and sport panties with a wide elastic band." Benji answered. "With Ranko the priorities are comfort and simplicity, as well a not so feminine look on them, so as long they work fine to cover her and in her period holding the pads she wears mostly anything." 

"That sounds a bit odd, but might just be me." Tsuruko commented. "But aren't we drifting away from our goal?" "Nope." Benji answered. "While we chat I am tracking the scent, at least not feeling it, we are walking around and searching for him, why not make the most of it?" 

Tsuruko chuckled at his words. "Fine you convinced me; we aren't just walking aimlessly and chatting about unimportant things." She said with a playful smile. "In my opinion your panties and getting inside them is an important thing." Benji replied teasingly. "I am more than sure that any men would kill to have the time that I have with you." 

Tsuruko smiled and tiptoes to kiss him. "You always make me feel like the most gorgeous woman in the world." She whispered softly. "Thank you." "You don't have to thank me; I am only saying that I believe to be true." Benji whispered back. "I haven't seen a woman out there that surpasses your beauty." 

* * *

Ranko munches on her midmorning snack, still annoyed about how Benji just left in the middle of the night, leaving behind a handful of notes, notes that she only saw when Motoko told her where to look, the worse part is that she had opened and panty drawer and didn't found the note that was lying over her panties. 

She wasn't bothered by the fact that Nagisa was sleeping with her, it didn't felt all that different from when she slept with Benji on his wolf form, what it bothered her was the fact that he didn't even asked for her help on whatever he was doing. "How long you plan on sulking around?" Motoko asked to the orange haired girl. "Benji said that he would be back soon." 

"You don't know how it is to be always looking at his back." Ranko commented. "Yeah right." Motoko replied slightly annoyed. "While younger I wasn't chasing Benji's back I was also chasing and looking at someone else's back." She said seriously. "I have an older sister; she is amazing, way stronger than I am, talented, beautiful, intelligent, honorable and brave. Ever since I was a little girl I kept chasing her, even today I keep trying to keep up with her shadow." 

"You have all that Motoko." Ranko said. "I can't even do a Zanganken Ni no Tachi." Motoko said sulking. "I was beaten by Seta in the Sayuki play, Benji more than once subdued me in diverse situations including when sparring." "Benji and Seta are special case." Ranko pointed out. "Benji and Seta honed their skills in life or death combats, it forced them to cast away many things, look at Seta and how he acts, and Benji trust on me on this Motoko Benji lost a lot to get where he is now." 

"Well you have a point about Seta but what Benji lost?" Motoko asked. "Well shortening and simplifying the story, Benji has the same way of thinking of a predatory animal when it comes to killing." Ranko answered. "He doesn't care, it is just something banal, a need on his life, not like he needs to kill but when comes to a situation that someone might die at his hands he won't care in doing it. It is a mean to an end." 

"I don't know if that is a bad thing." Motoko commented, comparing to what she feels about it, not having any kind of pleasure, guilt or shame about killing sounded a pretty good thing. "It isn't, look I don't understand it, and you don't understand it either." Ranko said seriously. "But rushing on training isn't good, I am a living proof of that, my training was so messed up that I still have scars, you saw the neko-ken." 

"I guess that you are right Ranko." Motoko replied. "But I don't feel much confident about myself." "What about we train together?" Ranko asked. "You are good, I am good, and we can improve together." "Sounds good." Motoko answered. "Other than Benji I didn't had a good training partner have a long while." 

* * *

Tsuruko was having fun, it wasn't the first time that she was in a date, even thought they are hunting her husband the mood was light and pleasant, Benji wasn't rushing neither was she, she knew that picking up a single human scent in the middle of crowded city, but she felt that they were closer than they were when they started out. 

"You want to take a break to have lunch?" Tsuruko asked to Benji. "I think that I got something." Benji replied, the smile tracing her lips vanished and the casualness disappeared from Tsuruko at his words, she didn't felt that as nice as she thought that would be. 

"It is coming from that side." Benji pointed up a street. "The wind is bringing the scent, it is faint and mixed but I am almost sure that is the same." "It is enough for me." Tsuruko replied. "Let's check it out." Benji nodded and they walk on that direction. 

Tsuruko tenses and holds tighter on Benji's arm. "It is him." Tsuruko whispered. "I can't see with who he is but it is a small person, right?" 

"It looks like a girl." Benji replied. "That is a rather common haircut; several of my students have that 'Peter Pan' cut." "I don't want to be noticed by them." Tsuruko said to Benji. "I don't trust only in a change in my hairstyle, hair color and clothes to trick him." 

Benji nodded understanding. "Go to that cake shop that we passed earlier, have something and wait for me." Benji said to her. "I will make contact and then leave, I just want mark them." Tsuruko nodded and does so. Benji get cover behind a light post, he coughs lightly and runs his hand on his hair changing the style, then he puts on an earring and it changes his hair from black to blonde. Lastly Benji pulls a camera from his pocket and hangs it on his shoulder. 

He walks towards the outdoor restaurant. "Excume se?" Benji purposely spoke in bad, broken and wrong Japanese when speaking with Tsuruko's husband. "Shiromiso crine?" (You speak English?) Tsuruko's husband asked to Benji in an rather accented English. (Thank god!I was starting to think that no one here speak English.) Benji said in English sound as relieved as possible. (I kind of got in the wrong way, but I wanted to see a temple with an odd name that there were lots of jumpers.) 

(You mean the Kiyomizu temple.) He said with a smile. (AH! That is right, your language is so hard to speak.) Benji replied. (How I get there?) (You turn right over there, then walk around one hundred meters, you will find a bus stop, take the one from the red line, then get out in the tenth stop, you can't miss it.) Tsuruko's husband answered. 

(Thank you.) Benji said with a smile standing his hand on an invitation to a handshake. (You are welcome.) He replied the handshake in a friendly manner. (Have a good sightseeing.) After few more pleasantries Benji leaves in the indicate direction. When out of sigh Benji removes the earring and stores the camera away, then he runs to the store where Tsuruko is waiting for him. 

* * *

"The other guy really looks like a young woman; if I couldn't smell his hormones I would swear that he was a woman." Benji said in a serious tone. 'He really reminds me of Maya Ibuki from Evangelion, if the hair was brown instead of black it would be a perfect look alike.' Benji added to himself. "And I would say that she was cute." 

"I don't care about the other, I want to know what you did then?" Tsuruko asked curious, a slice of chocolate cake that she ordered before Benji arrived was still in front of her untouched. "I placed a hormonal marker on him." Benji answered. "Simply speaking I placed synthetic female hormones on him, I can track them down really easily and it is with a specific signature so there isn't a way for me to confuse it." 

"That is very interesting." Tsuruko commented. "But what we do now." "We follow them, wait until we find where they will be staying tonight, then we plan how to proceed." Benji answered. "Because of the marker we can follow them from a much safer distance. So you will eat that or you bought for appearance's sake?" 

Tsuruko looks down to her chocolate cake slice. "I ordered for appearance, I asked the first thing in the menu." Tsuruko answered. "I am not really hungry right now, even thought I am cheating on him, finding that Hiraku is cheating me still is quite harsh." "It is okay." Benji said placing his hand over Tsuruko's. "But Hiraku? That is some odd name." He commented. "Don't make fun of it." Tsuruko said with a light frown, she sighs. "You know what go on, it is not like I care anymore." 

"You do." Benji said in a gentle tone. "Even thought it is gone you did loved him in the past, it is natural that hurts." Benji could see tears rising on Tsuruko's eyes. "Let's move to somewhere more private." Benji said handing to Tsuruko a handkerchief. "I don't want others to see your crying face." 

Tsuruko nodded taking the handkerchief while Benji pays for the uneaten cake. They walk to the nearest hotel and as soon they are alone in the room Tsuruko stop forcing herself to not cry and let it go, holding on Benji and crying loudly while he holds her back and does her best to comfort her. 

* * *

Tsuruko hiccupped softly, with Benji's arms wrapped lightly around her shoulders, her back pressing on his chest as they remain sited on the floor, she has no idea of how long she stood there crying on Benji's shoulder while he held her and ran his hand on her hair, doing his best to comfort and sooth her. 

"Feeling better?" Benji asked softly. "A little." Tsuruko answered. "It hurts real bad. I know that I am not in place of saying this, but it hurts. He traded me for a man. It would hurt less if was a woman." "He is stupid." Benji said leaning his head on hers. "If I had you I don't think that I would let go." 

"Is that a proposal?" Tsuruko asked with a small smile, even if it wasn't it made her feel better. "You want to be?" Benji replied. "I am damaged goods." Tsuruko places her hands on his forearms. "So do I." Tsuruko answered. "And I know that you know that already." 

"And you dodged my question." Benji teased softly nudging on Tsuruko's hair. Tsuruko giggled at the feeling. "I don't want to say that I don't know." Tsuruko whispered. "It…" "I understand that." Benji said cutting her sentence. "It is the same with me, I like you a lot, I know that you feel the same about me, but none of us know if it is truly love." 

Tsuruko nodded confirming, she was a bit surprised that Benji felt in the same way. "And to make things worse I am confused about this subject." Benji added. "It is understandable since you have other partners." Tsuruko commented, she felt that was a bit odd that she accepted that Benji sleeps with others while she feels so badly that her husband betrayed her. 'Maybe is because since the beginning Benji never hid that from me and I never made a claim on him.' she thought. 

"You have something else troubling you don't you?" Tsuruko asked softly, turning on the embrace and facing Benji, gently holding his face with her hands and looking at his eyes. "You want to talk about it?" "I don't know how you would take it Tsuruko." Benji answered looking away. "It isn't something that can be spoken so lightly about." 

Tsuruko closes her eyes and touches her forehead on his. "Benji I revealed to you things about myself that not even Hiraku saw, I never cried in front of him, I never did with him three fourths of what we have done together." Tsuruko said seriously. "You saw my naked soul in the times that we have been together." 

Benji closes his eyes, thinking seriously if he should tell his secret to Tsuruko, he knew that she was strong, that she experienced things that would have made others go insane, that she might believe on him, but just a might was step that Benji was afraid to step on. "I am not from this world." Benji finally said after an undetermined long silence between them. 

"You mean that you are an alien, an extraterrestrial being?" Tsuruko asked confused. "Not that way." Benji answered. "Then a demon or an angel?" Tsuruko asked. "Wait you don't act as an angel, then a demon." "I am human." Benji said seriously. "Tsuruko we can still stop, you don't have to know it all; you don't have to carry my burden." 

Tsuruko makes Benji look at her and kisses him passionately. "I can tell that is serious Benji." Tsuruko said after breaking the kiss. "You wouldn't act like this is wasn't even more serious than everything else that you told me before. Part of me is scared of learning, but Benji another part of me wants to know, right now I don't know which one is louder than the other, let's do this after we deal with Hiraku, after that is over we can focus on this and this alone." 

* * *

"Now this is great after a good work out." Ranko said to Motoko while waiting for her extra large chocolate parfait, she also got one for Motoko. "Ranko I don't think that eating something like this straight out of practice is good." Motoko commented. "We burned tons of calories, and this is a quick and tasty way of recovering them." Ranko replied. "Enjoy it even if just this once." 

"I guess that one time won't be bad." Motoko commented. "We should practice together more." "Yeah." Ranko replied. "You are really good, and I don't say to anyone." "What about Benji?" Motoko asked curious. "Well it is hard to classify Benji." Ranko answered. "I mean in skill we are both superior than he is, but…well…how I put it…" 

"He fights dirty." Motoko aided. "Not just that." Ranko replied. "It is more like the art isn't a art for him, he hardly holds back, he uses all kinds of dirty tricks and unfair advantages that he can get." "Strategically speaking he is right." Motoko commented. "Sun Tzu said that exploiting the weakness of your enemy is a valid and fair strategy, and is that what we do in martial arts too." 

"I know, and if there isn't a visible weakness we try to overcome with sheer superior whatever we have that the enemy doesn't." Ranko said casually. "Benji often says that he is weaker, less skilled and inferior to us, and that is why he doesn't hold back, keep moves hidden, use of misdirection and trickery to fight us." 

The waitress arrives with the parfaits and leave. "Technically that is the way of the ninja." Motoko commented. "Showing all his strengths would render him vulnerable to attacks, but in a way we are superior than he is, you said yourself that you almost killed him with one punch. He is also careful around me and Naru, he knows that we are dangerous and avoid being the target of our fury." 

"Then how he always manages to subdue us?" Ranko asked while scooping some of the chocolate covered chocolate ice cream. "Wits, surprise, misdirection, use of the surroundings, unfair tricks, use of any skill or knowledge that will give him an advantage against us." Motoko answered. "It is almost like everything that we face him, he plans a whole war strategy just to beat us." 

"So he beats us with his head and not his muscles." Ranko concluded. "I think that is quite close of what he does." Motoko replied. "Wanting or not Ranko we are fighters, our way of thinking, acting, planning, fighting and seeing things reflects that, we think within a set of standards, he doesn't, it is almost like he has a whole different way of thinking and seeing things than we do. Because of that Benji can make interpretations of what we do based in what he knows about us and our ways." 

"So he studied 'our' way of thinking, and using 'his' way of thinking he can do things differently than we do." Ranko said after wiping some chocolate from her lips. "Look back at his attacks to your mother's group." Motoko said after taking a couple bites of her parfait. "What you would have done?" 

"Well if I wasn't captured I would try beating everyone that I could find from that group." Ranko answered. "A head on confrontation, without studying or knowing anything about the enemy. You don't know how many they are, why they are there or even how strong they are." Motoko concluded. "Even being made of thousands of weaker opponents organizations are powerful because the power of numbers and influence. Your and most likely my way of facing the situation, a straight confrontation with the enemy ahead of me without thinking on what might happening bellow the scenes would only give us in the best scenario a temporary victory." 

"Why temporary?" Ranko asked. "Because if we beat one hundred soldiers of an army of ten thousand soldiers it is like taking a barrel of water from a pool, it affects little but isn't significant, we can still swim and dive in that pool." Motoko explained. "And based in the scenario that you beat your attackers this time and let them live is like throwing the barrel of water in back in the pool, the soldiers would recover and attack again." 

"And if I am in the same place they will just keep coming and coming until I am too tired to keep fighting them." Ranko said understanding. "And endangering anyone around me." "Exactly." Motoko replied. "Running away after a while it will give some security and even keep us safe from further attacks, but we would always fear being found by them, and there is the risk of being recognized." 

"But if we move to a remote area it would be safe." Ranko commented. "Just here in Japan there are thousands of acres of unexplored and unused land that could easily house us." "True." Motoko replied. "For argument's sake let's say that we hide in a desert mountain somewhere in the south of Japan, we would expend the rest of our lives as hermits in a mountain with the barely minimal comfort in the woods, having to farm, hunt and fish our food." 

"It doesn't sound all that bad." Ranko commented. "With time we could build a nice and cozy house in the middle of the woods, we would have tools and we have strength for that, sure it would take some time, let's say three weeks of straight work to make a small cabin out of wood with the minimal comfort, but it could be expanded and enhanced." 

"That is true, but that also leaves the issue of how you would live all alone out there with me and Benji or just you and Benji." Motoko said pointing to Ranko with her spoon. "No one else, not much privacy, no fancy stuff, no groceries, in the best case a two or three days trip to a nearby village or city to buy some rice or medicines, everything else would have to be farmed, raised or hunt by the two of you or the three of us. Remember that the objective here is to fully isolate ourselves from the society, avoid as much as possible contact with other people to avoid identification." 

Motoko pauses and sips her water. "And there is more Ranko, let me point out that there wouldn't be electricity, in the best case a fireplace and some other old ways of getting light." Motoko added. "Not much heating, no modern day luxuries. Is that the way that you would like to live the rest of your life?" 

"Motoko our ancestors lived like that for much longer than we have lived with the things that we have today." Ranko pointed out. "Sure it is a fully different lifestyle, I don't think that I would mind it that much, being alone with Benji, living a peaceful and simple life, eating what we produced, it doesn't sound bad at all." 

Motoko agreed inwardly, it sounded like a rather good life. "But that is the kind of life that you would want for your children?" Motoko asked seriously, she knows that Ranko and Benji aren't kin, and she was guessing that Ranko had some feelings for Benji that wasn't kinship. "Living and being like person of the last century, not knowing anything of the modern world?" 

Ranko remained in silence; she never thought that far on things, even on that fictitious scenario. "You make it sound like is a bad thing Motoko." Ranko commented. "I don't know all the answers, but there aren't people even today that live their entire lives as they lived centuries ago without any of the worldly comforts that we take for granted, and which they don't miss at all?" 

"Yes, there is but Ranko those are entire tribes." Motoko replied. "We are talking here about a very small group of people." "I don't know Motoko." Ranko said seriously. "I really don't know, but if something like this really happened to us, I think that I would really like of that life too. All the things that we have now, at least most of them are just commodities, people have lived without them for centuries, and people can live without them it they wanted to, and there is the possibility that let's say thirty years from now, if we had children by then we wouldn't be recognized, no one would know our children and we could live more years in the civilization." 

Motoko remained in silence, Ranko had a rather valid point there, the self-imposed exile could end after few decades, when older and different from their youth they could return to a more common life, adopting a different identity in some small village somewhere. 

* * *

Benji and Tsuruko moved in silence through the woods, Benji tracked Hiraku to that area, they learned that the two of them were staying in a cabin few kilometers away from the city, nice and private, far from prying eyes. 

A careful study of the area during the day on his wolf form Benji learned that the house had private container for kitchen gas and was connected to the phone and power lines by a handful of cables. Now in the middle of the night Benji and Tsuruko approach the cabin silently. 

Using a heat camera stolen from Nodoka Benji can see what is going on inside the cabin while they are covered by the shadow in the tree line. "They are having dinner?" Tsuruko asked trying to make sense of the colored images on the camera's display, thanks to a magic device their voice is converted to something like telepathy to the other's mind. 

"Looks like it." Benji replied. "It seems like candle light dinner, either that or some odd thing that I have no idea of what it is." On the screen they can see thought the walls and see what is going on inside the cabin. "I am impressed with that kind of technology." Tsuruko commented. "I never saw anything like that while killing demons." 

"This is military grade material." Benji replied. "Before I got this I never saw one outside a movie. I never thought that they worked this well, it is almost like x-ray and infrared together, I could shoot the two of them from this spot and kill them for sure." "I don't doubt of that." Tsuruko said with a smile. "But you said yourself, this must look like an accident, and your plan is so nasty and mean, perfectly plausible, you are sure that you aren't a professional assassin?" 

"I must be becoming one since I came." Benji answered. "I think that they are done now, as much I don't want to see it I hope that they get to the main course already so we can move." Tsuruko nodded confirming, sooner the two start having sex sooner she and Benji would be able to enter on the cabin. 

"God I so don't like yaoi." Benji muttered as the two inside start to kissing. "I am happy that I can't see the details." Tsuruko nodded agreeing. "But that is a good thing." She commented. "It means that they will be soon doing it." And proving her words around ten minutes, two blowjobs and a trip to the bed the couple are busy in the bedroom. 

Benji and Tsuruko move covering the distance between the trees and the cabin, they enter using the unlocked front door, after all the two inside were so far of anyone else that sudden company wasn't a worry for them. 

Putting the camera away Benji throws a disk on the bedroom, he and Tsuruko hear the dull burst of the gas inside the disk filling the bedroom in a fraction of second, then all the sounds from the room cease. "It won't last long." Benji said to Tsuruko. "Do your thing on them." 

Tsuruko nodded and moves to the bed. "Yuck and think that he used to kiss me with that mouth." She commented while softly pressing two points in the neck of each man. "I am done, that will keep them paralyzed until a counterpoint is pressed, and it can't be detected by any means." 

Benji nodded while collecting the empty disk. "You have been really naughty." Tsuruko said to Hiraku and Masaru, name that they learned while stalking the cabin. "First cheating on me with another man, it doesn't matter that he looks cute, he is still a man; how he can possibly give you better pleasures than I can? Second you two planned to kill me to live together, that are so shameful I would have given the divorce if you asked. Anyway I had a dream about you killing me, today I followed you, and heard you two making the plans to kill me in the next few days, now the tables are turned and the one dying is you." 

"Here are the candles." Benji said handing to Tsuruko a duffel bag filled with candles. "Leave them unlit; they are just fuel for the fire. Let me know when you are ready, I will be dealing with the pots." Tsuruko nodded confirming, thankful that Benji was giving her space to act. 

"I won't make this any longer than the needed." Tsuruko said while placing the candles around the bed, after few minutes she leaves the room after making sure that all the windows were shut. "I am done." Tsuruko said when finding Benji on the kitchen torching something inside a pan." 

"What is that?" She asked curious. "Few minutes ago this was wet pasta." Benji answered. "Now it is just probable cause." Tsuruko smiled at his words. "I left the exploding charm in the bedroom, and since it is made of paper so it will be fully destroyed by the fire." Tsuruko said casually. "It will explode in twenty minutes." 

"More than enough time." Benji replied turning off the torch and opening all the gas valves of the stove. "Now we leave, close the door and let the gas fill up the cabin." Tsuruko nodded and they leave the cabin, back at the tree line Benji and Tsuruko wait while using the camera to keep an eye on their victims, they knew better than just leaving things before sure of the death of the target. 

Five minutes later both were quite sure that the two lovers suffocated with the gas, more ten minutes make it an certain, and with five more minutes of wait the explosion blows the windows, doors and part of the roof and walls away while a huge fire started inside the wooden cabin. They wait for five more minutes watching the fire burning before leaving the area. 

* * *

Keitaro lies on his back on his room in the pension, he was having a good day, he wasn't arguing with Naru, Kaolla didn't kicked him, Kitsune wasn't tricking him, and above everything his plans with Haruka are working really well, the older woman told him that some of investments that they applied to were profiting well. 

His dream of not being a poor owner/manager of the pension was moving well, he scheduled the operation for his eyes with a reliable doctor and if everything goes well after the next year's list of approved for Todai he would be getting ready for the surgery. 

'To make things perfect if I could find the girl of the promise.' Keitaro idly thought, the shot of confidence that he was getting on the past months were really helping out, his studies are improving considerably and no longer was so hard to make the tests, while he would still flip out every now and then. 

Some loud thumping noises come from Naru's room, she was doing whatever she does that makes that sound, it was rather constant happening every day, but Keitaro knew better than letting his curiosity get better on him, he knew how much hard work of several parties it took to remove 'Keitaro bashing' from the girls activities list. 

Of course that doesn't stop Keitaro from wondering what Naru does in there to make so much noise, one of his theories was working out, a second one was masturbation, but that thought wasn't as arousing as it would be in the past, it wasn't that Naru became disgusting to him, it is just that she wasn't as attractive as before. 

Keitaro turns his radio on his favorite station just to muffle the noise, and then he starts to think in a different subject, if given a chance to date one of the girls who he would choose. 

Keitaro rules out Motoko from the list right from the beginning, he and Motoko dating sounded as alien as him being in love with Tama-chan. He knew that Motoko could be nice and kind, but he also noticed that all the gentle and womanly sides of her personality were mostly focused in one of the two Benjis, wolf or man. 

Then Keitaro rules out Kaolla, she was cute but too crazy work out, she would use her not harmless toys on him and god knows what might happen to him, she might even make him a kind of monster as Frankenstein's to play. 'Only if she was a little mellower, less active and more reasonable.' 

Then it came Ranko, Ranko was kind and friendly, but kept her distance and was something like a prize beyond his reach, as well being more tomboyish than what Keitaro could take, sure Ranko looked great when wearing her running clothes and have a figure that many men and women would kill to get, for different reasons of course, but he got this feeling telling that Ranko was better off being a friend and not a girlfriend. 

Keitaro thinks about Kitsune, she is pretty, and looks beautiful with her eyes open, but her habits of seducing and using him as a source of amusement, money, plaything and way of ducking bills made her quite unattractive, so did her habit of drinking, she drinks too often and often drinks too much, she was also too worried about images and appearances. 

Lastly there is Shinobu, a tad bit too shy, meek and with a hair trigger to panic, the sweetest, kindest and gentlest girl that he had ever met, it was openly clear that she has a crush on him and if she was a bit older Keitaro would try dating her, but Keitaro wouldn't step on that line, he was seven years older than she is and he doesn't think that he has qualities worth of Shinobu. 'She deserves better.' Keitaro thinks with a nod. 

'Maybe is too soon to think about this.' Keitaro concluded. 'There is still time, and while would be nice having a girlfriend, in my current position it would be more harmful that beneficial, I wonder how Benji would react on this situation, I guess that he would just walk to the girl that he likes and ask her out without worrying about anything else.' And Keitaro was right, but things aren't all that easy in Benji's life. 

* * *

Tsuruko let the warm water from the hotel shower rise away the shampoo from her long hair, she was worn because the entire ordeal, and since they left the cabin Tsuruko cried two more times with Benji there to comfort her, she was feeling kind of tired of crying. 

"Benji you are awake?" Tsuruko called while leaving the bathroom wrapped on a towel and toweling her wet hair. "Yes." Benji answered lying on the bed wearing only a pair of black trousers. "You are also tired?" She asked sitting near him. 

"It isn't tiredness." Benji answered looking at Tsuruko; the droplets of water on her skin glistering in the light making her look even more fascinating. "It is that subject isn't it?" Tsuruko said stopping her hand movements and looking straight at him. Benji nodded confirming. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." Tsuruko said. "If is a subject that is that hard and painful." 

Benji changes his position and rests his head on Tsuruko's lap. "I want to talk about it, but I am also afraid of what will happen to you if I do." Benji said seriously. "Benji I am pretty much used to shocking revelations, look at my life, I was a professional demon hunter, just tonight we killed my husband, what you would have to say that would be more shocking that everything that I experienced?" Tsuruko asked seriously, while gently touching his forehead with her hand, slightly cool from the water, she liked of that intimacy and could also understand why Benji was afraid of losing it. 

Benji remains in silence for few minutes then he sits up and looks at Tsuruko. "Put on your clothes." Benji instructed in a gentle but worried tone. "At least if the worse happens you can just run away without worries." Tsuruko felt sad at his words but she could tell that he said those out of care for her, he was scared of how she would react but still thought on her sake. 

Tsuruko puts on her dress and ignores her moist hair wetting the back of her dress; sitting on the bed once again she faces Benji and waits for him to start. "It all started a little more than two years ago." Benji started. 

* * *

It took Benji half an hour to explain to Tsuruko what happened to him and tell her about in his world she as well Motoko and Ranma are from two different anime shows, and for the past ten minutes Tsuruko is in silence, Benji doesn't know how to interpret that silence, it could be both good or bad, but at the very least she didn't ran away from him. 

"So summing up everything you came from a different world." Tsuruko said breaking the silence. "A world where I am part of an anime and manga, a fictitious character." "Yes." Benji confirmed. "So are Ranma and everyone else who you lived with, and all this time you kept this secret from everyone." Tsuruko continued. "You have no idea of how you ended here or even how to get back." 

Benji nodded confirming. Tsuruko looks at Benji, if that tale came from anyone else, she would have thought that the person was insane, but she knew Benji better than that, she could see in his eyes that he wasn't lying and that he shared with her his biggest fear. 

"I can understand why you hesitated in telling me this, and I can also understand your fear." Tsuruko said in a gentle tone. "The existential anguish and crisis that this brings on you." Benji is surprise with Tsuruko holding him and the gentle tone of her voice. "This is tearing you apart isn't it?" She asked softly. 

She was right, it was, not knowing if everything around him was real or just the disillusion of a insane mind shut from reality because an accident, not knowing if he was dead or alive, in coma or just sleeping. It was too much to take it easily, to shake it off, and the fear and anguish just keep growing. 

"Just let it go." Tsuruko whispered softly. "This isn't an illusion, your pain is real, this world is real, I am real and so are you, let it all go Benji, stop bottling it all in." It was all that he could take, holding on Tsuruko not much differently than she did on him earlier Benji's last barrier is gone and he cries holding tightly on Tsuruko. 

Tsuruko holds Benji tight but gently embrace, with the loving care of a worried mother and the worry of a lover. She knew that his pain was big and as much intense as hers, maybe more in a different way, and he carried it alone for far too long, doing too much for too many people, Tsuruko knows that now what Benji really needs is someone there for him as he was always there for someone else. 

End of the chapter fourteen: 

Author explanation corner: 

FINALLY!! It has been five chapters since this idea first popped on my mind and took a really, really long time to actually come to this point. As you must be wondering the first pair of the story is Benji x Tsuruko, but this is still under development, the relation might not work out. 

Now I will end that small rant/celebration and move to the explanations. 

Day with Tsuruko: The original killing idea was to kill Hiraku in the night that Tsuruko called, but after consideration and more thought it would be very difficult to make it happen, since if Tsuruko already knew where Hiraku was she would kill him herself without aid. 

And since she called around three and something in the morning, the trip would take at least one and a half hour (estimative, I might be and most likely am wrong about how long it takes to go from Hinata to Kyoto on a motorcycle) of straight driving, so Benji would arrive in Kyoto around five and something if not six in the morning, no longer 'night'. 

Then I need to 'fill' the gaps in the timeline, well I could have just skipped the whole day and just show Benji and Tsuruko closing in of the cabin, but it wouldn't be as interesting, and this is a character development chapter, it is to show a different side from Tsuruko that we don't see in the manga and anime. 

After all under her mad skill and savage strength there still is a woman, she can still feel hurt, betrayed and sad at being traded by a man, I wanted to show a more feminine and frail side of Tsuruko, as well a kind and caring side of her when she comforts Benji after he tells her everything. 

Tsuruko's clothes were picked to make her look different from her normal self, based in Love Hina Infinity (like a 'manual' of Love Hina with lots of character information and some exclusive images) Tsuruko wears loose occidental clothes on it (button up shirt and trousers), it is also revealed that she doesn't own any kind of panties, that is why the panty related dialogue, if she doesn't have any then she is familiar with them. 

Anyway the dress was selected because is something that Tsuruko normally doesn't wear (first it might be considered too feminine for her, second she doesn't own any panties so wearing skirts is a no-no). 

Motoko and Ranko: The Sayuki play happened as described, Ranko wasn't part of the cast neither was her friends, so Seta defeated Motoko, Keitaro ripped Naru's bra, everything moved just like in the original time line, Nagisa, Ranko and other original characters affected little the development of the beach events. 

I am following a line closer to the manga timeline, so Motoko will learn the Zanganken later; I placed Motoko to train with Ranko since none of them had a regular partner to train so it would benefit them both. The parfait scene was supposed just to be a small scene but I ended making it a long one with Ranko and Motoko thinking about their differences from Benji, especially on how they act and react to situations. 

Cabin scene: It is another scene that I thought have a while since I started to plot killing Tsuruko's husband. I needed to make a 'clean' killing, one that would look like an accident. 

First I needed a good setting, so the whole gay issue would lead Hiraku and Masaru to have a secluded place for them to have their affair far from curious eyes. So I made them have a cabin far from the city, but close enough to not be troublesome (in a big city you can move around for days in certain areas of the city without meeting one acquaintance or friend or being spotted by one), so they could stay in the cabin for a while and if wanted go to the city for a lunch or to shop for things (leaving the things to your imagination to wonder what it is). 

Second I needed to make it look like an accidental death, so slashing, stabbing, bombing, shooting or poisoning wouldn't look like accidents. Then I recalled that kitchen gas leaks kill people and are dangerous because it can explode with any spark, so the weapon became kitchen gas. Benji striked with a undetectable quick acting paralyzing gas that last for thirty seconds, enough to Tsuruko use her vast knowledge of martial and mystical arts to do something else untraceable to paralyze them for good. 

To make things more believable the setting of the accident had to be good, and that is why the candles, I am sure that if you haven't a date with someone in a place with tons of candles on the 'scenario' you saw it on a movie or TV show. Candles are made to burn, so big scented candles will burn really well, and being around the bed it will make the bed burn even more and on it the two targets/victims. 

The burnt pasta was to show that while making or warming dinner the two got engrossed with something else and forgot about it, the pot boiled over and threw water on the stove putting down the fire and let the gas escape, later the pasta would burn on the fire, well with the excuse to the gas leak all that was left was the trigger for the explosion, detonators, timers, sabotage or any kind of regular trigger might be found in the investigation that will later happen, so it was needed a magical trigger that would consume itself and if left any trace leave traces of something common as paper ash, in a cabin would have books, magazines or even toilet paper. 

With those elements the whole death looks like an accident, and even a detailed investigation would conclude that was accidental, the fire would destroy any piece of evidence as hair or fibers. 

Keitaro's thoughts: I wanted something to separate the two scenes of Benji telling to Tsuruko his secret, and since I needed some Keitaro development I decided to make him think about the girls and how he feels about them. 

Benji's fear: I know that is an existential philosophical thing, but Benji is from a world where Ranma and the others are fictitious characters, eventually with given time, doubts, theories and fears would surface in a person on that situation. Is everything real? It is the reveries of an insane mind? Dreams? Paradise? Hell? 

Plenty of stuff to wonder about, imagining that everything that he learned and experienced might be just fabrications of his mind, maybe he is trapped into a coma and everything is just one long dream. See the whole circle of how it feeds itself acting as a snowball running downhill? 

And it isn't the kind of thing that you could just speak up with anyone, most people will think that you are insane and have you locked up in a sanatorium, and if they believe then they are the ones who might go insane with the existential questions that it brings up to them. 

Lastly this fear is also the one that Benji has in the main Ranma story. 

Hiraku and Masaru: There isn't much information on Tsuruko's husband, just some flashback images of him and that is all. So I picked up his name, he won't appear much, Masaru, well was made to be the reason that Hiraku wasn't paying attention to Tsuruko, he looks exactly like Maya Ibuki, it is an uke (bottom or receiver from a yaoi pairing), a feminine bishonen (or whatever exact term that I am not familiar with), he is over 26 but doesn't look like it, I won't detail him much, you can fill the gaps in any way that you want. 

**………Extras……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… **

Inside the lingerie store Tsuruko looks around and notices once again that all the other clients are looking at them. "Benji I really don't feel comfortable right now." Tsuruko whispered to Benji. "And I am not even wearing anything under this dress." 

"Ignore them." Benji replied while examining the display racks. "They are jealous of your beauty and the fact that you have your boyfriend shopping with you." Tsuruko blushes at his words. "The fact that you are actually selecting the panties also brings lots of attention!" She whispered embarrassed. 

"I bought underwear for Ranko, Nagisa and the kittens, I don't care about them, I am just shopping." Benji said casually. "A matter of fact is that I still buy Nagisa's panties, you won't believe how Ranko managed to ruin everything that she washed that time." Tsuruko sighed, she knew that Benji was right, and in an odd way he was like a single parent buying clothes for a daughter, but she isn't a teen and Benji isn't her father. 

'But he is my lover and I am most likely going to show him my underwear when we have sex.' Tsuruko thought. 'I why I am making such a big deal of this? This is a rare opportunity, most males doesn't like or help when shopping with a woman.' 

"Benji isn't that a bit daring?" Tsuruko asked while Benji places a pair of black satin and lacy panties with a matching bra on their basket. "It will look great on you." Benji said with a nod, dark colors against Tsuruko's white skin will produce an amazing contrast enhancing her beauty. "Besides isn't like anyone other than the two of us will see you on this." 

"Well that is true." Tsuruko murmured embarrassed, but she was also enjoying the moment, she never experienced anything like that with Hiraku, so she decided to stop worrying and make most of the experience. 

Tsuruko looks around more carefully and smiled seeing something very eye catching. "Benji what you think about this one?" Tsuruko asked in a purr, holding a hanger that holds a ruby red lacy bra and a matching pair of panties. "I think that will look great on you." Benji answered. 'I wish that I could remember the science behind why attractive women and red are such a good combination, it is the same one for why the red Ferraris give many men a hard on.' 

Tsuruko pouted lightly at his answer. "I was expecting a bit more of a reaction from you." She said. Benji had to admit that seeing Tsuruko pouting made her look really cute. "I do think that will look great on you Tsuruko." Benji replied. "But it needs more than that to get me worked up." 

Tsuruko's pout changes to a smile. "I know, well it was worth the shot." She said casually while placing the hanger on the basket. "But I don't think that we picked anything that would work with this dress." "A simple white one will do it." Benji commented pointing to an area filled with white panties. "A cotton white one is one of the basics." 

"And why you loaded the basket with everything else?" Tsuruko asked teasingly. "I have my reasons." Benji replied in the same way. "Seeing you on them topping them." Tsuruko chuckled and they move to a different area of the store. 

**………Sailor Moon twist part 6……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… **

In Rei's house 

"You are sure that it is safe now?" Haruka asked to Ami. "Yes I am." Ami answered. "I worked on Setsuna's wand, so all the bugs were hammered on her wand, so in yours, Michiru's and Hotaru's it is just download the finished program." "I really don't like of the idea of not being able to fight for one week." Haruka said not so willingly handing to Ami her wand. 

"We waited more than that." Makoto commented. "Yours will be short when comparing." "Besides there isn't an enemy attack for a while." Minako pointed out. "That is why I am worried!" Haruka exclaimed. "It has been almost two months since the last attack, something really bad is coming!" 

"You are just being paranoid." Rei commented. "Enjoy the break for a change, go to a hotel or some other nice place with Michiru, I know this really nice place in Kyoto, a full spa with hot spring, I think that I have a couple of discount vouchers somewhere." "A hot spring spa sounds like a nice way to spend our time." Michiru said with a smile. "Forget our worries for few days and relax, and we have never visited Kyoto it is a nice opportunity." 


	15. So much trouble

Hi this is Benji Himura

Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic. This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Love Hina I don't own or any of the characters of those shows. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed: Benji Himura.

This story begins in the Ranmaverse somewhere in the middle of the events of the chapter thirteen, actually between the release of Hinako and the events of the Gamble King events.

In the Love Hina timeline in the manga it stars after the chapter twenty six but before the chapter twenty seven.

This is a crossover so both stories casts or at least part of them will interact and there will be changes on both stories and on the plotline of Outcast Ranma. For anyone following the main story this scenario doesn't follow the same 'timeline' from the main story, it works on the line that timeline show on the story is the original one.

"Text" Talked sentences.

'Text' Thoughts.

-Text- Sounds effects.

(Text) Talked sentences in a foreign language as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

**Text**: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

_Text_: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

"_Text"_ Alteration in the voice, not in the tone but the voice itself.

Chapter fifteen: So much trouble

Annoyed Benji continues to correct the English tests that were given few weeks earlier, the lectures and conversation classes weren't bad, once you get used to them it is okay, but what Benji truly hated was to correct tests and exercises. He had a newfound respect for teachers, one has to really love the job because it sucks big time.

The worse is that had been months since he last heard anything from Tsuruko, she wasn't returning his calls, he got the message that the number wasn't working anymore, he couldn't just ask to Motoko about her either, his trips to Kyoto had been fruitless too, he couldn't even pick a hint of residual scent there anymore.

He was worried and had several theories about the reasons, going from fully removing him from her life because what he told her to her death in some demon hunting mission. Deciding to end for the day Benji puts the tests away on his desk and gather his things, he could pick up the distant sound of few clubs still practicing, some leaving for the day, both Ranko and Motoko are long gone, back to the pension.

Shouldering his backpack Benji leaves the building after changing to his outdoors shoes, he walks in a unhurried pace, all that was now all part of a routine, eventless days passing one after the other, it was a peaceful life. He had stopped going to school on his bike to safe money as well to enjoy a long lost habit of hearing to his favorite songs while walking.

Long before he reached halfway of the long stairway of the pension Benji could feel the smell of fumes and burnt plastic, Kaolla made up something new that exploded and filled the pension with the stench of burnt electric parts, and that was the reason that Benji is so shocked when entering on the pension's living area.

Tsuruko was there, sited in the sofa, holding a bundle of blankets in a way that Benji was too familiar with, Benji didn't noticed Motoko and her anger held back only by the sheer fear of her sister and Benji's own abilities. With the same mobility of a stone statue Benji sees Tsuruko walking towards him, with the smile that he longed for all those months on her lips, he couldn't hear her voice but he could see her lips moving as she speaks to him.

When she was less than half meter away from him, slightly leaning forward and to the side to show him the baby that he knew that she was carrying something silver exploded from her chest and the wrap, easily piercing it all as if all the flesh, bone and clothe was made of paper, until it finally pierced his own chest and Benji saw Motoko with her sword in hands behind Tsuruko, stabbing them.

With short and quick breathes Benji wakes and carefully studies his surroundings, he first noticed that Tsuruko's scent was the most powerful scent that he could feel, then he noticed that he was sweating, and lastly that a pair of slender, soft but strong arms were holding him, pressing him with a gentle but strong pressure against a soft and warm surface, the feeling was familiar, comforting and soothing, he knew where he was, he was on Tsuruko's arms, she was holding his head against her bare chest, this time comforting him.

"You are okay Benji?" Tsuruko asked worriedly. "You suddenly twitched and tensed." Benji's memory finally catches up with him, he remembers that he and Tsuruko went to bed together after killing her husband and his lover, that after Benji told her his secret, she accepted everything with ease and comforted him, casting away his fears and doubts, after that they went to bed together and slept.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

After several minutes on Tsuruko's arms and finally calm, but still holding and being held by Tsuruko Benji said. "You took everything that I said too well al…" "I believe in you." Tsuruko said cutting Benji's sentence. "I experienced my share of unreal things, even being imprisoned in an illusionary world by a demon, so I dealt with that kind of anguish and feelings before."

"How you do it?" Benji asked; he was truly impressed by Tsuruko. "If you can smell them is real." Tsuruko answered. "If it hurts it is real, if you experience new things it is real." "Sounds reasonable." Benji commented. "Of course that there is a bit more as you know it yourself." Tsuruko added. "But once you learn something that eases the turmoil everything clears out."

Benji nodded agreeing. "But it is fantastic to imagine that there are different realities and in that one I am part of an anime, it makes me wonder what kind of power made that person tune into this world." Tsuruko commented. "But that is unimportant, I am really happy that you trust on me so much to share with me this secret, and I can understand why you suffered and keeps it in secret, others might react really badly."

"Other than me there are only two people in this world who know it." Benji said. "Who?" Tsuruko asked curious, wondering what kind of person would be the other person who knows Benji's secret. "She is an elder in an amazon village in China, when I first arrived I told her about this since I knew because her age she would understand my situation." Benji answered. "Before the hunt she lived in Nerima with her granddaughter but after I she fled and I never contact her, it might lead problems towards me and the others."

Tsuruko nodded understanding, Benji wasn't fully trusting that destroying the organization would remove the target from him, it was a sensible worry. "I just recalled something else that made me sure that you were telling me the truth." Tsuruko commented, knowing that a bit more of reassurance would make Benji feel better. "And what is it?" Benji asked curious.

"I could see it in your eyes, it wasn't a lie or insanity, adding to that is that you know some Shinmei-ryu attacks that I know that you shouldn't know about them so that would only happen if you had some prior knowledge of them." Tsuruko answered. "And that story of me forcing Motoko to marry that Keitaro person because she told me a lie, it does sound like something that I would do."

"Which remember me of saying this." Benji said. "I think that you should stop frightening Motoko like that, while my relation with my brother is everything but good, Motoko really looks up at you, but she is utterly scared of you and your habit of deciding on things and forcing her and others to abide to them."

Tsuruko smiled embarrassed. "I do have that habit." She said embarrassed. "I know that you led a group of demon slayers, and you are used to be obeyed." Benji continued. "But you can't make everyone do what you want out of fear of you, thought I did notice that you aren't doing that, at least around me."

"You do bring up a mellower side of me." Tsuruko commented blushing. "I guess that I am not used with someone who treats me like you do, you treat me like a woman, thought I do notice that you are also wary of me." "My feelings about women are similar to my feelings towards fire, the nature and the ocean." Benji replied. "Well this will be interesting." Tsuruko commented with an amused smile, and sitting up facing Benji.

"As fire, the nature and the ocean women are beautiful, but if not treated with the proper respect and care they will show a very scary and dangerous side of them." Benji said seriously. "And that can easily cause all sorts of damage that can run out of control, and you can get hurt."

Tsuruko smiled happily and kissed him, his words show a high regard and respect towards women, and she had to admit that it was quite heart melting. "I will try not being as scary as you saw me in your world and as I was in the past." Tsuruko whispered against his lips after breaking the kiss. "But lower a bit the level or wariness that you have near me, it hurts to feel that." Benji nodded in silence and kisses her.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"I saw a dream." Benji answered after a while. "A nightmare or bad dream?" Tsuruko asked worried but relieved, it wasn't anything other than a nightmare; she had some too in few rare nights. "I am not sure how to classify it." Benji said. "It was disturbingly real, also confusing."

Adjusting herself a bit better on the embrace Tsuruko said. "Well then tell me about it. It usually helps." Benji takes a deep breath. "It is a bit silly, but still kind of scary." Benji said. "Months passed since last spoke with each other, in there we parted shortly after we left the woods, I returned to Hinata and continued with my life for months, I tried to contact you but I couldn't reach or find you, then one afternoon when I return to the pension you were there, holding a baby wrapped on a blanket, I was shocked with everything, I couldn't even hear what you said to me, you walked to me to show the baby and suddenly Motoko came from behind you and stabbed you, me and the baby, I think that I woke a bit after that."

Tsuruko attentively heard him, while she thought that was a bit unlikely that she would shut contact with Benji during the pregnancy she could see few scenarios that she would have to hide because of it, she also could see herself in those scenarios going to Hinata to reveal the child to Benji, she knew that he wouldn't run from responsibility and would love the child, while highly unlikely she also could see Motoko killing them in a stroke of jealousy, she had a feeling that Motoko had some feelings towards Benji and that Benji knew that otherwise Motoko wouldn't react that badly.

"It is a hard to classify dream." Tsuruko commented. "But we both know quite well that Motoko wouldn't be able to kill us in a sudden stroke of jealousy, even with my guard open because a child and happiness in showing our child to you. And I am not pregnant, I am taking pills, as a woman I am responsible for taking contraception seriously."

"I am not so sure if that makes be relieved or not." Benji commented noticing that he was holding on Tsuruko's waist. Tsuruko chuckled softly. "Me too." She said with a smile. "But trust on me Benji I wouldn't run and hide from you if I was pregnant, trust me on this I would make you suffer with cravings and everything that comes with pregnancy, specially during the delivery, I would curse you for ten generations back and forward." "Now forward would mean the child too." Benji teased her. Tsuruko let out a little exclamation of surprise. "Oh! You are right about that."

Benji let out a long breath, Tsuruko giggled softly as the warm air tickles her skin. "But it was disturbingly real, so much that for a while I really felt lost in time." Tsuruko softly kisses his forehead. "But it was all a dream, now let's take a quick shower, you are sweaty and you got sweat on me." She said with a smile. "In the morning we talk some more about what we do now, and we still have to pick up the shikigamis."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

After having breakfast in Tsuruko's house Benji and Tsuruko are having tea in the dinning hall. "So what we do now?" Tsuruko asked, they decided to leave the difficult subjects to be discussed after the meal.

Benji looks at his watch. "Thankfully today is a holiday so I don't have to go back to Hinata until later today." Benji answered. "About what we did, we should stick from what we learned from what our shikigamis experienced in full day of sightseeing on Kyoto's main spots. It should take around one week until the two are identified, but you should file a missing person's report one day after the day that your husband was supposed to return, also make many calls to his phone as trying to contact him."

"While all that is informative and I will do that, I mean about us." Tsuruko replied. "About our relation." Benji hesitates a little, few moments of silence follow. "I don't know Tsuruko." Benji finally said. "I do like you, and I do have feelings for you." "But you also aren't sure about them." Tsuruko added looking down at her cup. "I also feel like that, I don't deny or am ashamed of anything that we did, but we only met seventeen times in a little more than sixteen months, we expend a couple days together at longest, most of the time we are having sex."

Benji knew that it was all true, they experienced many things and got a bond of trust between them, but they also don't know much about the other. "We shared our worst secrets, we fought together and did more than that." Tsuruko continued. "But it is the right thing? Aren't we taking advantage of the other? I was lonely so were you, I don't want to experience this pain again Benji."

Benji gently covers her hand with his. "I know." Benji said. "But I also know that all that I said to you was and still is true, Tsuruko you are gorgeous, if you were mine it would be hard for me to get away from you, I wouldn't let you go." Benji takes a deep breath. "But you aren't mine; you are still Hiraku's. And until you are finished with that subject with the law I can't make you mine or try making you mine. So let's use this time to think about it okay?"

Tsuruko closes her eyes; tears running down her cheeks, once again Benji were giving her a way out, but also telling her the sweetest words that someone ever told her. "I don't need to think." Tsuruko whispered crawling over the table, placing her right hand over Benji's left shoulder and kissing him.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

The Hinata-sou tenants look at Motoko and Ranko, the two girls are staring at the tea cups that they were drinking from that suddenly broke in two. "You are also getting this really bad feeling?" Ranko asked to Motoko in a scared and shaky voice.

"As if something very, very, very wrong happened and two forces of unspeakable evil were combined?" Motoko replied in the same way. "And that something, really bad will happen?" Ranko nodded confirming and so does Motoko.

The others look at them confused. "Now don't take that so seriously." Kitsune said cheerfully, it only means that the cups were bad, it isn't a bad omen or signal of the incoming apocalypse."

"Yeah, if something would signal of that it would be Keitaro acing the tests for Todai." Naru commented with a grin. "I don't know I still feel a disturbance in the force." Motoko said in a worried tone. "Me too, something isn't right." Ranko added. "My gut is telling me that whatever it is; is serious."

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"So in the most technical and purist sense this kind of reality wouldn't exist." Benji said to Tsuruko. "Since in here there is more than one anime reality in one world. But in a more open minded view it is possible, many theorize that certain shows could have existed in the same world without interacting or conflicting with the other by sheer lack of interest in both parties, as well differences in the generation between them."

"So if you haven't left Nerima because you were hunt you wouldn't go to Hinata and learn that the world of 'Love Hina' exists in the same world as 'Ranma ½', is that what you are saying?" Tsuruko asked, she had to admit that it was an interesting subject once you start probing it.

"Yes." Benji answered. "There could be at least four different 'animes casts' in this world, all from different authors in my world." "And why you don't try to find out?" Tsuruko asked seriously. "If you know them as you knew about me, Motoko and the others of 'Love Hina' why not interact with them too?"

"I don't think that I can manage it." Benji answered seriously. "We are speaking about big casts, at least seven people on every episode of each one of them, sure there would be benefits of interacting with them, but putting together let's say fifty people with different temperaments and personalities in the same room makes hard on everyone."

Tsuruko nodded understanding. "And if there are good ones, I mean good in the way of following a strict honor code and that would actively try to prevent others of doing things that are against his personal code of honor, even if the other person has a whole different set of values." Benji continued. "I believe in eliminating the evil and the corrupt, the ones beyond salvation, and…"

"And that means that you kill your enemies." Tsuruko said understanding. "And you took the leadership of the group that you formed and helps the ones around you, but if that person keeps getting on your way, the enemies who will keep coming; will keep coming and hurting those who you care, you would get mad at that person, and that would make that person's friends defend him or her, creating attrition between you, those who follow and believe in you and in your methods and those who doesn't agree with them."

"Exactly." Benji said with a nod. "I can't compete with them, I don't have any of the resources, talent, powers or bloodlines that they have, I am just a normal guy who got cursed and had the spirit forged into something different by my experiences, I can't abide with their methods, they would kill me, besides it is plain stupidity to leave a enemy who will keep attacking and hurting people alive."

Tsuruko agreed with Benji, she also shared the same believe of killing the evil and corrupt, those beyond salvation or will to change, the only way to protect those who they love and the innocent from those are killing them, it is a painful path but it is also rewarding when you can see the results of it.

"So what you do about it? How you don't find about them?" Tsuruko asked. "I just avoid the areas where they live and act." Benji answered. "It isn't an absolute certain of not meeting them, but lessens the chances a lot since most of them keep on a regular routine and area."

Tsuruko chuckled at his answer. "It is reasonable but also naïve." She said with a smile. "Wishful thinking in the best case." Benji smiled and holds his hands up in his defense. "I also have the right of hoping." He said casually. "And I hope in not bumping or meeting with another cast, I don't have enough time, energy and intelligence to balance more than I am already balancing."

"I doubt that you are at your limit yet, and I am sure that you are smart enough for even more than this." Tsuruko commented. "But as fascinating as the subject is, it is already quite late, you want to have lunch?" "Sure." Benji replied. "Lunch sounds good right now."

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Ranko was starting to get worried about Benji, he was gone for two days without giving any news since he left on Sunday and the class are about to start. Then the sound of Benji's bike reaches Ranko's ears and she looks at the window and sees him driving by the gate and parking with a dangerous stunt on his parking space. It was funny to see Benji jumping out of the bike and running to the school building.

"Safe!" Benji exclaimed entering on the classroom as soon the bell rings. "Out." Toshiko said with a playful grin, on his desk. "Now Tachibana you really shouldn't run in the halls like that, you are a teacher after all." Benji chuckled embarrassed. "Well I had a really busy weekend." Benji said. "So busy that you overslept?" Toshiko asked casually.

"So busy that to be here now I had to drive for over one and a half hour." Benji answered. "Non-stop and really fast." "Well it does explain why the leather jacket over your suit and the dirt on your pants." Toshiko commented. "Very well since you rushed so much to be here in time I will let it slide today, but don't let it happen again."

"I won't." Benji replied. Toshiko stands up and walks towards the door, passing by Benji. "And Tachibana." Toshiko said from the door. "Try covering up that hickey too, it is showing up on your collar." Then Toshiko closes the door and leaves in a hurry knowing very well what she had triggered.

Benji sighed while the storm of questions from the girls rain down on him, he places his helmet, jacket and backpack over the desk. "SILENCE!" Benji barked with enough power to effectively make them all to obey.

"Yes I expend the weekend with my wife and this is a mark from that, now that I explained it I will take the attendance, if I hear anymore questions about this I will eat the liver of whoever asked it, am I making myself clear?" Benji said in a firm and serious tone, Benji nods pleased seeing all the girls nodding in silence. "Good. Akagi…"

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"I didn't knew that your brother could do that." Tomomi said to Ranko during their first break. "Trust me if he couldn't do that he wouldn't be able to teach a single class, or make anyone listen to him." Ranko replied, she was annoyed that Benji had ran out for the entire weekend to have sex with some unknown slut somewhere in Japan.

Far from there Tsuruko sneezes loudly while adding the soap on the washing machine, she lightly rubs her nose with her free hand. "If I haven't caught a cold someone must be speaking ill of me." Tsuruko commented while throwing a measure of soap inside the machine. "I don't think that I caught a cold, Benji is warm and we kept ourselves really hot too."

"I know that it is natural and Tachibana-sensei is after all a healthy young man but is a bit surprising that he would almost get late because he expend the weekend with his wife." Riko commented. "They must be really busy catching up." Ranko sighed annoyed at the conversation, but she knew that was futile to struggle, since when a good gossip comes around girls can't stop talking about it.

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Benji knew that at lunch hour the entire school would have learned about his story, at least no one really knew what he did on the weekend, on the bright side it wasn't much of a lie since Tsuruko was the friend that posed as his wife on the pair of pictures as disguise, not that he would ever show them to Motoko, he wanted to live after all.

But Benji had underestimated the power of the gossip and his own popularity among the girls, it wasn't even half way to the lunch when all the girls had learned about the hickey and the story, at least it was still the same, it would be really bad if was blown out of proportion, he makes a mental note of strangling Toshiko and later scolding Tsuruko for leaving a hickey on him in such a visible place, well she left in others places too and he wasn't the only one with them either.

Considering the wisdom of using a flashbang on the next classroom Benji munches on a Pocky stick on the teacher's lounge, with a grand arch movement Benji points mechanical chalk pencil to Misato who just opened the door excited. "Don't make me shoot you." Benji said in a cold voice. "Come on Tachibana as if that is a threat, that is just a chalk holder and you aren't even looking this way." Misato replied teasingly. "Now give us some juicy…!"

Benji presses a button on the plastic body of the thick marker like body; the white chalk is launched in a perfectly straight line and impacts on Misato's forehead. "ACK?!" she exclaimed holding her forehead. Calmly Benji pulls back a slide and puts a new chalk on the pencil. "So you need another one to get the message across?" Benji asked casually, with the stick in the corner of his lips.

"I get it! I get it!" Misato exclaimed squatting down behind a table. "Don't shoot!" Benji finishes the stick and stores the rest of the box on his drawer. "God can't a guy have some quality time with the wife without everyone making a ruckus about it?" Benji muttered annoyed, he was really going to hurt the next person who asked or said something about it to him or near him. "Hey Tachibana I heard that you…?!" Sakura barely manages to duck a flying chalkboard eraser that leaves a trail of dust behind it.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Motoko was really annoyed, the subject of Benji's story about the weekend was everything that all the others were speaking about all day long, she didn't like of that kind of subject, she could understand why a healthy young male would seek the company of a also healthy young female, but she was annoyed by all the chatter about it, and she shared the same annoyance that Benji was irradiating when she saw him on her class before the lunch hour.

He looked scary and ready to kill, his aura was frightening, irradiating from him as a semitransparent black and red mist, composed of sheer anger and evil, if someone told her that Benji was the absolute ruler from hell at that moment she would believe on that for the rest of her life. "If hear another word about this I swear that I will scream!" Ranko exclaimed angrily, effectively making her friends as well Motoko's club kohais stop talking. "Can't you speak about something else? Get a life!"

'At least I am not the only one sick of the subject.' Motoko thought smiling inwardly. "We are curious." Riko said seriously. "Ranko we are sixteen, we are curious about sex and stuff." "At least don't chat about my brother and your fantasies about him near me." Ranko replied. "As if he would pay any attention to a bunch of kids when he have a mature woman all over him. Trust me when I say this, she is gorgeous, she could be a model, an actress, whatever she wants because her looks, he isn't stupid, why bother with some underdeveloped teens?"

"Tachibana-san you are being cruel." One of Motoko's kohais said in a soft tone. "Some of us are still developing and not all of us will get large breasts or sexy bodies, at least let us have your fantasies." "How you would take hearing everyone spouting fantasies about your brother or father, or whatever male relative that you have right in front of you for hours?" Ranko asked seriously. "'How I wanted to Tachibana-sensei to kiss me!' or 'I wonder if he would let me rest or would keep going even after I am tired.' You think that I want to hear that all day? Get real, having a crush is okay but this is far too much."

The girl doesn't say anything; the whole roof is quiet after Ranko's outburst. "And what you suggest for us to talk about?" Tomomi asked after a short while. "I don't know, but I am tired of hearing about Benji and fantasies about him." Ranko answered. "About what you chat everyday?"

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Fine I admit I screwed up." Tomomi not feeling sorry at all said to Benji and the other teachers in the lounge after the lunch. "I shouldn't have brought it up in the middle of homeroom, I just couldn't help it." "And since Tachibana had to explain to class what happened to avoid rumors and stories, he ended adding more fuel on the fire." Sakura commented.

"And this is another reason why I didn't want to teach." Benji commented leaning against his desk. "You have any idea of how many love letters I get everyday? I am tired of dealing with those lovesick girls, and the things that they are saying; I really thought that girls would have a bit more of decorum than boys."

Sakura nodded agreeing. "Yeah, one would think that boys would be the ones speaking about sex and related things like that." She said seriously. "I overheard some pretty scary stuff, not the kind that would be worth punishment, but some of those girls have some pretty dangerous imaginations running overdrive right now. Tachibana isn't the one to blain here, he is a newlywed and he expends most of the week away from his wife, it is natural that he will do those things."

"I already said that I am sorry and made a mistake." Toshiko said. "I don't know what else to do." "My vote is for batons, stun guns and tear gas." Benji said from his desk. "They are teenager girls and not dangerous prisoners in a maximum security prison." Sasaki commented.

"From the stuff that I heard they are as dangerous as them." Benji replied. "Why you think that I ordered take out instead of lunching on the cafeteria as usual?" "Change of pace?" Misato asked meekly. Benji sighed covering his eyes and lightly shaking his head in disgust.

"Some girls were considering grabbing him during lunch and dragging him to an empty room." Akiho Kohsaka, the Japanese teacher said in a serious voice. "Some thought in coming after him after the classes, they are quite aggressive." "And I was thinking that competition to get some other woman's boyfriend that I red in magazines was blow out of proportion." Benji commented. "If I wasn't used to some pretty intense temptation I would have eventually given in. Nothing against young girls but there are things that just an experienced woman have, and they can't make it work just with youth."

"Some nerves of steel you have there." Sasaki commented. "Your wife must be really something." "She would easily win any pageant that she entered on." Benji replied. "She is drop dead gorgeous; no little girl can come close of her beauty, style and passion, no matter how much they try."

Benji and the other teachers smiled at each other as they hear hurried steps moving away from the shut door of the lounge. "They are gone." Sayuri said peeking through the door. "They took it with sinker and everything. This should counter the prior fire." "I hope so, this is getting disturbing." Benji commented. "You know if I was seven years younger and a student here I would be happy in being in this situation."

"I can understand that." Sasaki said, yes he could understand that, he wished the same thing. "Anyway for the time being we can't do anything else." Toshiko said to the teachers. "We will hold this 'meeting' for more twenty minutes, it will give plenty of time to Benji's words crush the feelings of the girls."

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Ranko had to force herself to not to laugh hard at what she just heard, the 'scouts' sent to the teacher's lounge spread Benji's words around and everywhere girls are crying and sobbing at his words, in the other hand Motoko was more worried, she knew that a scorned woman is dangerous and Benji just scorned an entire school of them.

"I have to hand it to Benji, he can be quite cruel." Motoko said to Ranko. "I guess that he broke some kind of record today." "I wouldn't be surprised." Ranko replied chuckling. "The biggest number of broken hearts in one afternoon, hard to beat." They pass by the school gate; there weren't any club activities all were canceled because no one felt like practicing or meeting.

"On the bright side no one learned about the kiss incident from last month." Ranko commented cheerfully. "Please don't bring that up." Motoko replied blushing. "Someone might hear it." "Come on Motoko I know that you are dying to brag about it. The ONLY girl of the school that kissed Benji." Ranko teased the taller girl. "You did what most of them can only dream of doing." "It was an accident!" Motoko exclaimed blushing even more.

………**Few days before the new period started…………………………………………………………………………………**

"Keep that thing away from me!" Motoko shouted while running away from one of Kaolla's mad toys that were chasing her on the pension halls. "What the hell is going on here?" Benji asked climbing the stairs to the third floor. "Can't a man sulk on his room in peace for a change?"

"BENJI!" Motoko exclaimed skidding on the wooden floor and impacting against him, unbalanced Benji couldn't brace himself and Motoko's momentum pushes them back. With a loud noise Benji lands on the wooden floor bellow with Motoko on his arms, safely held and protected from the fall.

"Now this is pure gold!" Kitsune exclaimed recording the landing. Motoko landed on top of Benji with her lips against his, stunned with the fall the open mouth kiss lasts for quite a while. Confused Motoko pushes herself up. "Now this is even more precious!" Kitsune exclaimed seeing the thin thread of glistering saliva connecting their mouths.

"Motoko-chan you are so bold!" Kitsune exclaimed teasingly. "An open mouth kiss with an older man in the middle of the hall!" "It was an accident!" Motoko exclaimed embarrassed, but straddled on Benji.

"Accidents like that don't happen." Kitsune teased. "Actually they do." Keitaro commented, he knew that from experience since his first kiss with Naru was thanks to a kick from Sara, not counting all the other accidents that he was on. "You two are okay?" "I had worse landings." Benji commented under Motoko. "Now Motoko while I don't mind you being there how long you will be sitting on my lap?"

"AH!" Motoko exclaimed while jumping away from Benji's lap. Benji stands up and dusts himself. "I will be borrowing this." He said taking Motoko's sword from her. "BASH!" Benji shouted bringing down the sword on the kissing thing that Kaolla build that was flying on his direction, shattering it in countless pieces to Kaolla's dismay.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"At least your first kiss was way better than mine." Ranko commented shivering lightly. "I had nightmares for weeks because of it." She was jealous of Motoko; since her first kiss was taken by Benji even if by accident, but hers was take by that perverted skate guy, as much she doesn't want to think about that as her first kiss, it was a fact.

"But it was an accident." Motoko said embarrassed, while inwardly she was happy in how things turned in the end. "It isn't like he would want to kiss me." 'But I can have my fantasies about it.' Motoko added to herself, only making herself blush more.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Nee-chan I am bored." Nagisa said to Ranko, she was done with her homework and wasn't in the mood to read or watch TV, and by Benji's instructions she shouldn't play with Kaolla or her toys, that left Sarah but Sarah was also considered out limits because her bad influence, and Shinobu who are closer of her age.

Ranko looks at her cousin and then back to her homework, Ranko knew that was a futile struggle, leaving her study materials over her study desk Ranko stands up. "So what you want to do today?" Ranko asked to Nagisa, it was rare for her to be home that soon in the afternoon, she knew that it was because of her that Nagisa was restless.

"I want to play outside." Nagisa replied happily. "Be a bit more specific Nagisa." Ranko said with a smile. Nagisa thinks hard on what they could do together, she often plays with Ranko but normally is much later in the day and they can't play outside. "Battledore and shuttlecock!" Nagisa exclaimed after a while.

Ranko nodded pleased, she knew the game and was good for Nagisa, it would allow her to move around a lot and get plenty of exercise. "Okay go get the rackets and the shuttlecock." Ranko said. "I will change into something else and we can play." Nagisa nodded happily and runs out to her own room.

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After almost one hour playing with Nagisa Ranko worked up a good sweat. 'I never knew that holding back could be this tiresome.' Ranko thought while following an also sweaty Nagisa to the bathroom. 'Wait! I can't just bath with Nagisa! She has no idea that I am cursed!' Ranko thought suddenly stopping.

"Nee-chan is something wrong?" Nagisa asked innocently, unaware of Ranko's problem. "No." Ranko answered. "I just remember that I can't soak right now, but I can take a shower." "But soaking is fun!" Nagisa exclaimed. "You can soak." Ranko replied with a smile. "I will wash you up and you can soak up, I will shower and wait near the edge."

Nagisa pouted but agreed, Ranko was happy, as long Nagisa doesn't learn about the curse things will be fine for a while. 'But I wonder if it is okay for me to wash Nagisa…' Ranko thinks with Nagisa holding her hand and leading her to the bath. 'Well it is more right than Benji washing her; after all I am related to Nagisa.'

But Ranko discovered that just because she is a girl at the moment and is blood related to Nagisa doesn't make easy for her to wash the younger girl, she had no idea of what to do and where to touch Nagisa and where not to touch. Frowning lightly while thinking on what to do Ranko pours some soap on the washcloth. 'I will wash her back and her hair, yes this will be all right, and I think that she can wash everything else by herself.' Ranko thought with a nod.

It takes few attempts with Nagisa telling when is right to Ranko to find the right pressure to wash her back. 'She is so small.' Ranko thought chuckling softly. While her hands work Ranko notices that Nagisa is washing her own arms and legs with another washcloth, her small body is gradually covered with white bubbles.

"I will rinse you now." Ranko said reaching for the shower head. "Okay." Nagisa replied, Ranko washes away the bubbles and looks around the washing area, there are shampoos from the others there, Kitsune's L'Oreal, Benji's Garnier Fructis, Naru's Seda, Shinobu's Dove, Motoko used Shiseido, Kaolla some odd custom made banana scented shampoo, and lastly her own shampoo.

'Why I am the only one to use such a generic brand?' Ranko thought when comparing her bottle to the others. 'I am the only one that doesn't really care about my looks? Wait Keitaro doesn't seem to have any either. But Keitaro has his own bath, so I can't really be sure.'

Noticing Ranko's confusion Nagisa takes Benji's shampoo bottle. "This one." Nagisa said handing it to Ranko. "Thank you." Ranko said with a smile. 'Well if Nagisa gave me this one it means that is the one that Benji uses on her.' She thought while placing a reasonable amount of shampoo on her free hand palm before placing the bottle down and scrubbing Nagisa's head.

After a short while Nagisa is happily soaking on the large bath while Ranko is taking a cold shower. 'This is getting troublesome.' Ranko thought while keeping an eye on Nagisa. 'Now I understand why Benji asks to either Shinobu or Motoko take a bath with Nagisa when he isn't able to bath with her, he knows that it is dangerous for me.'

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Ranko stretches while walking on the market; Nagisa is walking near of Ranko, following Benji's instructions of not being far of people who live with her and not talking to people who she doesn't know. "So what is left?" Ranko asked to Nagisa, Nagisa was holding the shopping list and Ranko was carrying the groceries for the dinner.

"Leek, peppers, tofu and bean sprouts." Nagisa answered after checking the list, everything else was marked with a red cross before it. "Then we should head to the vegetable shop." Ranko commented. "It has been a while since Shinobu suddenly decided to make something new that we didn't have ingredients for."

For Ranko was just a simple errand, she had done plenty of those, but she didn't walked or shopped often with Nagisa, unlike Ranko Nagisa was a hardworking student and finished her homework when Ranko would be lazing out or skipping it, also Nagisa enjoys reading, habit that Ranko didn't developed much further than reading mangas.

Ranko stops walking and turns back when hearing "Tachibana!" Ranko recognized the voice, it was from one of the girls that were called wonder whores, they are the worse students of the school and caused all sort of trouble, Ranko knew that they weren't there socially.

"Yes?" Ranko asked politely, keeping Nagisa close of her. "Who is the brat?" The tallest girl of the group of four asked to Ranko. "She is my cousin and she isn't a brat." Ranko answered. "You have any other reason for calling me out? We are in a grocery run right now."

"So she is the brat that your brother was supposed to be guarding. Kind of cute." She said eyeing Nagisa, uneasy Nagisa hides behind Ranko. "You are aware that your brother stomped over my feelings doesn't you?"

"My brother is married, as much I don't like it; he was never available for you or anyone else from the school." Ranko said seriously. "And it wasn't only you; Benji refused the feelings from pretty much everyone else in the school." "And unlike all those spineless girls I plan to get back on him." Uzuki said acidly. "So hand over the brat, or we will have to hurt you too."

"That won't happen." Ranko said in a firm tone. "Well I tried." Uzuki said in a mockery of defeated tone, and then she suddenly punches Ranko on the face. "I was so waiting for that." Ranko said with a grin, a thin trail of blood is running from a cut on the corner of her lower lip.

If she wished Ranko could have blocked the punch, Uzuki telegraphed the move and Ranko saw it coming way before it connected, but as Benji once told her, against an annoying weaker opponent you should give them the first strike, since after it she could deal lots of damage on her before the 'self-defense' became pure aggression.

Ranko also had hundreds or ways of subduing Uzuki without hurting her, but she chose one method that she saw once that would give permanent damage and mind shattering pain, she perfectly mirrored Benji's movements when killing the last man who attacked the Hinata-sou.

Uzuki shouts in pain while Ranko twist and forces her arm, the screams turn into howls when Ranko smashes her kneecap with her foot, forcing the broken joint to bend in an unnatural angle, then Ranko slams her knee while bringing Uzuki's arm against it as hard as she can.

The sound of the bone shattering is easily heard before Uzuki who for few instants was mute with pain howls even louder, staring at the broken bones exposed after tearing their way out of her arm. While knowing that there was one more move Ranko ends there, she wanted to bring a whole new world of pain to Uzuki and not kill her; the final knee bash on her face would kill her.

"So the rest of you want to try your luck too?" Ranko asked sweetly. Screaming in fear they grab Uzuki and run away. Ranko sighs and pops her neck in place ignoring the bystanders staring at her. 'That felt so good.' Ranko thought hiding her smile while wiping the blood away with her left hand. 'I can't get careless, just because I can inflict that kind of damage easily it doesn't mean that I should, but that whore deserved that.'

With a pleased nod Ranko looks down at Nagisa. "Everything is okay now." She said in a gently tone. "The scary ladies are gone now." Nagisa smiled to Ranko and nodded. "Let's finish the grocery; Shinobu is waiting for the ingredients." Ranko said smiling back to the little girl; it felt good to protect Nagisa from the wonder whores, as good as crippling Uzuki.

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Benji arrives in the nothing else to do way past midnight, tired and annoyed, in his left hand he is holding both his suit's jacket as his leather jacket, both lightly torn, he is wearing a black holster that keeps a pistol on his left side under his arm, the black material forming an 'X' on his back.

Benji throws the jackets over a dust covered chair as he walks to a solid wood stairs, moving to the loft Benji sighs tired and throws himself on the bed in a corner of the room. "I am getting too old for this." He muttered tiredly, if his day got worse he would use the pistol on the next annoyance, but at least there no one would disturb him and he would be able to get some sleep.

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Ranko fidgets under Benji's glare, she wasn't expecting to hear from Uzuki anytime soon, and based on her experience she wasn't expecting to hear from her at all. "From what we heard from the two, as well from the shopkeepers we clearly know who has the blame here." Toshiko said seriously. "I am sorry Mister and Misses Otokawa, but your daughter started the whole thing, she wanted to harm a girl with half of her age and assaulted an underclassman, everyone stated that she was the one who started the incident, even her friends."

"That girl crippled my daughter!" Mister Otokawa exclaimed enraged. "The sport's scholarship that she was dreaming about is now beyond her reach! She ruined my girl's future!" Toshiko places a file in front of them. "Your daughter ruined her own future even before that." Toshiko said in a serious tone. "She smoke inside and outside school, cheats in tests, harass other students, you want me to keep listing all that she had done?"

The man stays in silence. "And this was the last drop; I could overlook some rebellious behavior, it normal on her age." Toshiko continued. "But she fully intended to hurt a young girl for petty reasons, suspension isn't a fitting punishment, I am sorry but we have to expel your daughter, the school won't risk having a student who would create a scandal like that because an teenager crush."

"Why my daughter is the only one to be punished?! Why that girl isn't being punished?!" Misses Otokawa asked pointing to Ranko. "Punish her for protecting her cousin from harm? That sounds fair to you?" Benji asked in a serious tone to Misses Otokawa. "Your daughter attacked my sister with the sole intension to attack my cousin who is just six years old after taking Ranko out of the way; you know what they were doing?" Seeing the denial from the woman Benji continued. "They were in a grocery run, they were out buying ingredients for the dinner. Your daughter was out looking for trouble."

Benji makes a small pause and pulls a small digital recorder from his pocket. "You are lucky that I am not pressing charges or suing you." Benji said turning it on, then Uzuki's voice and Ranko's are heard and the conversation before the fight is heard. "This would give me an automatic victory in court." Benji continued while seeing the horrified expressions on the couple's faces as well their daughter in a wheel chair and casts. "It will be quite bad for your reputation if this gets out of this office, so what kind of damage this would do to your career?"

The family remains in silence; Mister Otokawa tries to say something but stutters senselessly. "I discussed earlier with Tachibana and he agreed in putting a lid on this subject if your daughter leaves the school quietly and gives up on any plan or plot for revenge at anyone of his family." Toshiko said calmly. "As well a written apology, if there is a plot for revenge he will pursue the proper legal channels, I have to explain what will happen next?"

"We understand." Misses Otokawa replied. "We are sorry for our daughter outrageous behavior." Ten more minutes of arrangements later Benji and Ranko leaves Toshiko's office. As soon the door is closed Benji hits Ranko in the back of her head. "Ouch!" Ranko exclaimed rubbing the sore spot.

"Why you did that?!" Ranko exclaimed looking up at him. "You idiot!" Benji replied. "You have more years of training than I do and you decide to use my combo?!" "She deserved that!" Ranko muttered, sulking lightly.

"Of course she does, but those movements aren't the kind of thing to be used so lightly!" Benji said seriously. "While I don't give a damn about her, there are repercussions to fighting. This isn't Nerima where you can throw a building on some martial fucker and in the next day everything is fine. And you didn't even told me about this! You got really lucky that your phone has the bad habit of turning on the recording after recharging."

"I thought that it wouldn't be important." Ranko replied feeling even worse. "Look I am glad that you protected Nagisa, but you have to tell me about those kinds of things, you can't keep thinking that things will magically work themselves out after an incident." Benji continued. "But in the bright side you remembered of letting her hit you first, so we are right on this issue."

"So I am not in trouble?" Ranko asked hopefully. "You are." Benji answered. "I am blocking your phone from taking and making calls other than for emergency numbers, your allowance is blocked, you can't buy, eat or drink anything sweets, ice cream and all the stuff that you normally have other than normal food, and you are grounded for two weeks."

"That isn't fair!" Ranko exclaimed. "I am your guardian." Benji replied. "Sometimes things that for you aren't fair are part of disciplining you, I was almost forgetting, you also have to present a booklet with one hundred pages, in English, from one of Stephen King's books, and filling the pages ninety two to one hundred and twenty of your textbook as punishment assignments, after all I am also your homeroom teacher and have to discipline you as a school representative."

"NNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!" Ranko howled in despair. "That will help you to learn to tell me after you do something like that, not be so flashy about beating the crap out others, and not thinking about the consequences of your actions." Benji said with a grin. "But before that as an appreciation token for protecting Nagisa I will buy you a tub of Haagen-Dazs." "YAAAYY!!" Ranko exclaimed happily.

One hour later in her room after the ice cream daze passed Ranko realized that the reward wasn't as large as the punishment. "Well I got some good ice cream out of it." Ranko muttered, it wasn't so bad, besides it was the first time that she was actually punished for something that she have done, not some odd or crazy martial arts punishing for something that in some twisted way was wrong, it was a plain punishment for something that it was also wrong and not just right, it showed that Benji worried about her, the glare when he first confronted her with the story told her that, and Nagisa was also closer of her, so for Ranko the outcome wasn't all that bad given the circumstances.

End of the chapter fifteen:

Author explanation corner:

Dream sequence: I decided to play a bit, make everyone Benji included to think that things had finally calmed down and fell into a peaceful routine, as well build some anguish. A good way to provide anguish would be Tsuruko since she is the only person that Benji ever confided the secret with, Cologne was unavoidable so doesn't really counts.

Before the dream Benji wasn't aware if Tsuruko was using any kind of birth control so suddenly appearing with a baby would be surprising but plausible after all the sex that they had. Tsuruko would be happy in having a child; she did 'gave' up being a swordswoman to be a housewife so kids are part of her dream of future.

As often said and pointed in the story Motoko have feelings for Benji, still not clear if it is love or something else, and based on her personality a sudden outburst of jealousy isn't so far fetched, let's remember that in the manga she was quite ready to kill Keitaro several times because she had feelings for him, and that before Keitaro officially 'chose' Naru she was willing to kill or at least beat him up badly because of jealousy.

Tsuruko's reaction at the secret: Given her past it is plausible that she once experienced something that make hard for her difference reality from illusion (demon spell, mind control, induced dream/illusion, whatever else fills the role), which would lead to a existential crisis that she would have to deal with.

So when learning that Benji is experiencing something like that she would be able to help him, and give him 'solid ground' to harbor himself on and cast away the fears and doubts. She also would be able to tell if it was all lie or fabrication by looking into his eyes and reading his aura.

Finally she would find the whole multi-reality idea fascinating and interesting, it is not everyday that you learn that in a different world you are famous and have fans, there is more reasons than that and I will let everyone pick your own personal favorite.

Benji's line about women, fire, ocean and nature: It lost some of the effect with the conversion to English, but is related to the fascination that they stir on us, the beauty, and the mystery as well the danger that it is inherent on them.

Disturbance in the force: Benji and Tsuruko in love, an inventive cursed werewolf who almost single handed destroyed a large and complex organization in few months; the strongest woman in the know world, feared by many because her power, ready to kill in the flick of a hat. Pair the two of them and you make the math of what can happen.

Well there is also the fact that both Ranko and Motoko have feelings for Benji, for them Benji having strong feelings for someone else is a bad thing, and that someone being a woman as Tsuruko makes even worse and harder to compete in beauty and other areas.

Benji's and Tsuruko's discussion about the 'Crossover reality': As mentioned in the scene itself that kind of reality shouldn't exist, but as said there too, it is a reality with two confirmed animes on it, since I didn't said the exact number if I decide in make the Sailor Moon twist part of the main story, and it also gives space for other additions if I decided on making them, but as said there I am not sure if I will, managing too many series and casts is hard.

Benji's methods aren't compatible with certain characters, one example is Tenchi who dislikes fighting and killing, going lengths to avoid killing his enemies, it would cause plenty of conflict between Benji and Tenchi, and Tenchi is backed by two powerful lovesick women…I mean in love. So Benji would lose if conflicting with Tenchi, in sheer raw destructive power Tenchi's side beats Benji's. And there are other casts like that, that I won't mention.

Toshiko's big mouth: I wanted to make Benji's life harder so I needed someone to make a comment, so I placed Toshiko on Ranko's homeroom class since Benji was late, so late that he wasn't there in the normal time for teachers to arrive, and since he didn't called telling that he would be late she was angry about that. And this also triggered a Ranko x Nagisa event in the story.

Benji's chalk mechanical pencil: Based on a rubber mechanic 'pencil' I don't know the name in English for it, it is like a mechanical pencil instead of the lead it uses a 'cylinder' of rubber, in Benji's chalk one instead of rubber it uses a piece of chalk, it has a coil under the moving piece that moves the chalk, but it can also be used to shoot the chalk on a sleeping student or in an annoying teacher. It is custom made.

Kissing incident: In the manga before the classes started there is the kissing incident that Shinobu accidentally triggered, since it is a waste let Motoko's first kiss being taken by a stupid machine, I bypassed the original kiss, instead of being kissed Motoko ran away, and ran into Benji who was moody because Toshiko was forcing him to teach.

Ranko and Nagisa: I had planned a scene with them, there was as well by requests to see more of them, so this scene fit the two requirements. Normally Ranko does expend time with Nagisa, they do the normal stuff that everyone does daily, of course Nagisa doesn't bath with Ranko, but with Benji or Motoko, sometimes with Shinobu.

I also felt that there would be students that would take the incident badly and would try to get some revenge, so I ended adding Uzuki and her friends, know as wonder whores, to try getting revenge from Benji using Nagisa. Ranko is after all Ranko, she wouldn't let that happen.

But she also learned lots of things from Benji, he is after all teaching her more than just English, and driven by a desire of maul the other girl as well to try something new she performed Benji's breaking sequence, first used in the chapter six, and since Ranko is considerably stronger than Benji, the fractures that she gives are by far more damaging and compound than Benji's.

Shampoos: Based in the fact that every person has a different taste, and even in a normal household you can find at least three different brands and types (based in a family of four, in case of a larger family then the number increases) of shampoo in the bathroom.

Most of the brands were randomly selected based on fame, effectiveness, effect, users and approximated user preference. Benji's shampoo's brand is the same as mine, Motoko's was selected based the fact that is an old, famous and traditional Japanese brand, Kaolla's is brandless since I don't know any brand that makes banana scented shampoo.

Benji's arrival on the nothing else to do: It is impressing how hours of nagging can ruin one's day. Well that isn't all, more details to be revealed later. And yes Benji made a little time to clean up at least the bed, getting a new mattress and clean sheets there, just in case of him having any kind of emergency where he would want to stay alone and sleep in peace.

Ranko's punishment and after effects from beating Uzuki: It isn't Nerima so there would be some kind of repercussions from Ranko's actions. Since normal people would go through normal methods and how much the school affects the students' lives in Japan I thought that the school would be the first step that the family would take.

The punishment is something that I thought that a normal parent or guardian would give, nothing too outrageous, absurd or Genma-like, and of course Benji is still Ranko's teacher so he can and punished her twice, once as guardian and a second time as teacher.

………**Extras………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………**

Three days after Ranko's punishment

Benji looks at the pile of construction materials in one of the houses of the area that Chie purchased. "I have to admit they move quite fast." Benji commented. "In two days they already raised the walls to join the two houses." "I told you that I would find good labor." Chie replied pleased with herself. "In this rate in one month the house will be ready, in two months the foundation of the garden will be completed and in four everything will be completed and ready to work."

"That is good to hear." Benji said. "What about the kittens?" Chie frowned lightly. "The two cat girls are in a bad situation." Chie answered. "Their problems with color are really compromising, I did a simple test with all the girls, I gave them a color by numbers sheet and a box of color pencils to color the drawing. They can't see pink, purple and some shades of gray, brown."

"It was mentioned in the files about them." Benji said seriously. "Can't you do something about that?" Chie asked worried. "I don't think so." Benji answered sadly. "It is something with their optic nerves, I don't think that it can be solved with some magic tricks or anything like that, we would need an ophthalmologist, an expert in color blindness, if not a scientist, to at least minimize it."

"And we don't have any." Chie said understanding, finding a doctor it would require tests and tests would reveal that they aren't normal girls. "Maybe someone in the magic society knows something about it, there should be magic doctors, and they also have more advanced technology available."

"But we don't really have time right now." Benji commented. "We are all busy with everything, and we don't have all that many contacts in the magic society." Chie nodded agreeing, she was busy with Sumire, building the kindergarten, and helping Fuuka with the kittens, Fuuka was busy with the kittens and learning charm magic, Eri was busy studying to get on medical school, Benji is busy teaching and taking care of Ranko, Nagisa and the entire pack.

"Until now it isn't affecting them much." Benji added. "So until we get more breathing space let's leave it alone, the best that we can do is try teaching them to differentiate the shades of whatever color they can see as the ones that they can't see and teach the difference between them."

"I guess so." Chie commented lightly depressed, even wanting to change things she had to accept that certain things are beyond their abilities to change. "You are aware of the festival in the school aren't you?" Chie asked after few moments of silence. "I teach there, I am aware of that even if I didn't want to." Benji answered. "What about it?"

"I thought that it would be a nice experience for the kittens." Chie replied. "They study hard all morning and a part of the afternoon, they play a bit outside with my and Fuuka's supervision, but they don't play with other kids or go to parks, the school festival would give them good memories."

"I guess that you are right." Benji commented. "But the others don't know about the kittens and we both know how affectionate they are towards me, they would jump and hug me at every chance that they get, it would raise lots of questions." "I am sure that we can work something out." Chie replied. "Just keep an open mind and give them a chance to go there."

It wasn't like Benji didn't want them to go or that was going to make them not to go, he does believe that it would give them a nice set of memories, but he was afraid of the consequences to everyone of the pack, the kittens included, they never saw or moved in such a crowd as the festival would create, they are too innocent and naïve, making them easy targets to perverts and stalkers.

There is also the risk of them exposing and ruining Benji's disguise, his story looked solid but it was actually quite frail, and was still needing several pieces of evidence to make it solid, ten girls, two of them being cat girls, all excited, over affectionate and loving, jumping on him would definitely ruin his story, he can't even lie about them being part of his family, since in his story Benji and Ranko are running away from their family, it was hard enough to make believable enough to get Nagisa in.

He couldn't lie and tell that they are from his 'wife's' family, first the girls are too old to be that affectionate towards Benji when knowing him for on the tops three years, second that would require some 'parental' and family advisory, meaning that he would to ask to Tsuruko to come act as their second cousin or aunt, and that was out of the picture, Motoko would recognize Tsuruko, and was far too soon to their relation to be exposed, Tsuruko just got the news from the police that they might have found Hiraku's body.

While she was acting as a grieving wife, and 'helping' the police it was too soon in the investigation of the fire to her to go out of town and play 'house' with Benji, which recalled him to get ready to be called by the police or Tsuruko and go to Kyoto to play the 'worried friend/alibi' for Tsuruko. It would ruin everything for them if someone saw her with a small platoon of girls playing Benji's wife in a school festival in Tokyo so soon after her husband's death.

Chiemi wouldn't help much, the younger spirit was unwillingly to help and mostly absent of the pack, while her mother jumped head in and loved every moment with the group, taking a role of female alpha and managing everything that she could and diligently assigning tasks, chores to the adults as well Chiemi, and taking care of the cubs.

Benji didn't exactly forced Chiemi to help, he knew that she had school and other related activities, in the other hand Chie makes Chiemi help even if only one hour by day, claiming that was good for her to learn how to take care of kids as well to her get used to other mystical creatures.

As last resort Benji could call the 'unofficials' to help; Rin, Mizuki, Shiaki, Saeki and Junko, with them it would make easier to everyone, with Fuuka, Eri and Chie helping to manage the pack they would have eight adults to watch over the kids, that leaving out Chiemi who would help with her club as well class activities, and Benji who would have to help with some low grade management of the event, being nominated to watch over Ranko's classroom event, over Motoko's classroom event since Misato isn't all that reliable, and he somehow got tangled to help the manga club event, so both him and Chiemi couldn't escort the kittens, making ten adults to ten kids, lastly it would create attrition between the kittens if Benji hanged out with one of them and not the others. And Benji also to escort Nagisa on the festival too, helping with Sumire, and juggling his teacher's tasks.

And all that while keeping the fact that he 'fathered' all the kittens, have two 'subordinates/friends/slaves', the last is Fuuka's word because the work of babysitting the kittens and her constant use for any magic related task, more like a playful barb instead of a insult.

"Making the kittens not act as usual towards me will be the hardest part." Benji muttered running his hand on his hair. 'And I don't have all that many friends.' Benji added to himself. Chie smiled sympathetically, Benji was right, even not being as present as Fuuka is in their lives all the kittens love Benji a lot and dearly, the short hours that he spends with them during the week was the ones that they liked and enjoyed the most. "What can we do?" Chie asked playfully. "You are after all their father figure. I wouldn't be surprised of them calling you 'daddy' anytime soon."

Benji wouldn't be surprised either, he could see in their eyes that there are times that they are just looking for the right affectionate word to call him. Benji isn't sure if he is thankful or not for the girls not knowing much about human relations, otherwise he would have been a 'father' much earlier than he wanted, while surprising, Benji found that the whole idea wasn't as scary and intimidating as he first thought about it.

Regardless of that Benji still had to plan a lot if he wanted to let the girls go to the festival, he would have to make lots of calls, speak with everyone, then explain to the kittens the rules of the day, he had a feeling that they wouldn't take it all that well, or that they would forget them as soon they spot him on the school.

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Nagisa was a bit annoyed, she wasn't in the mood to read, watch TV, play with her computer and videogames, draw or do the things that she normally does in home, Benji wasn't there, he was busy with something else, some adult responsibility that he had and she couldn't fully understand and he wouldn't explain to her, Ranko was grounded because she hurt a girl from the same school, Nagisa couldn't just accept that Ranko had to be punished for protecting her.

Kaolla was up to something with Sarah, Nagisa had learned to smell when the two blondes were up to something, Shinobu was busy doing the laundry, Nagisa doesn't like how Kitsune smells and avoids the eternal fox as much as she can, Motoko was meditating in some location near the pension, that left only Keitaro and Naru.

Nagisa's instincts warn her to not stay near Naru, even when she acts sweetly Nagisa can feel danger oozing out of her as a wave, Keitaro was just too silly to play with, the last time that she tried to play with Keitaro somehow he broke the ball with his head after hitting the ball with his head for the seventh time, she couldn't understand how someone breaks a rubber volleyball.

Bored Nagisa contemplates on what to do, she wasn't used to have that much free time, back when she lived with her father she was always doing something, mostly classes that she didn't liked, ballet and dance lessons, piano lessons, violin lessons, flute lessons, etiquette lessons, flower arrangement lessons, decorum, needlework, and all that not counting the regular studies and other advanced studies, in the end of the day she was too tired to even want to play.

Now she had several hours of free time, hours that she could fill with mostly anything that she wanted, diligently she would do her homework and other school assignments as soon as arriving in the pension, she would end everything in less than one hour, leaving the remaining of the afternoon free.

She now starts to wonder if she should ask to Benji to enroll her in a couple of classes even if was just to kill time and ease her boredom, she liked dancing, the violin wasn't all that bad either, but she preferred singing than playing a instrument, but she remembers that Benji doesn't let her walk alone in the streets, she was smart and mature enough to know that it was for her own safety.

And if she asked for those classes Benji would have to ask to someone to take her to the respective schools, she doesn't want to burden Shinobu with her whims, neither Benji nor Ranko, Benji works all day and still makes time to play with her before dinnertime; and Ranko studies and have club activities to worry about. Getting the teacher to teach her in the pension would be also troublesome.

With a sigh Nagisa throws herself in the bed wondering how to solve the problems of her boredom, she didn't had any friends in school yet, she could tell that some of the boys don't like her, she noticed that because she was always diligent with her studies and the teachers praised her, she wasn't favored by many of the others in class, she couldn't help it, she was used to study and enjoyed studying, and if she stopped doing her schoolwork she would get even more bored, there wasn't anyone of her age to play with in the pension.

Not that she had one in the mansion, but there she was always too busy, tired and distracted occupied to notice the lack of friends. She loved being around Ranko, the older girl was fun and was always a challenge to play against in any outdoor games, and in some board games.

Now Benji she truly loved being around, she felt safe around him, he loved to read as much as she does, even thought his books are by far thicker and bigger than hers, and most of the time without figures on them, but she knew that he also loved manga, she still couldn't find his private stash but she knew that he had a large one hidden somewhere. He also loved music, while she couldn't identify with many of his tastes, much less understand ten percent of his choice of foreign music he liked to hear, but it wasn't bad either, well at least all the others that wasn't from that German band that she couldn't speak the name, those ones gave her headaches and made her ears ring.

But Benji wasn't there as often as she would like, she understand that he was busy with his responsibilities, but she really wanted to know what he meant that sometime soon she would get two handfuls of new friends. With a sigh Nagisa moves to Benji's room, he had a book that she was looking forward to reading, at least searching it would be something to do.

………Monday………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Benji throws things around in his room while frantically searching for something. "Where is it?!" Benji asked to himself while throwing a book over his shoulder. Motoko attracted by the noise only avoids the hard covered book hitting her in the face thanks to years of training; she grabs the book before it connects.

"What happened Benji?" Motoko asked worried, it wasn't normal for Benji to be like that. "I can't find my watch and a deck that I left here Saturday morning." Benji answered, his watch was more than just a watch, he had made Fuuka charm it with ten different spells covering from defense to offense.

"I can see the worry about the watch but why the deck?" Motoko asked placing the book over his bed. "They are just cards right?" "They aren't playing cards Motoko." Benji replied seriously. "This deck, contained inside a card case has twenty cards infused with spells. They are magic charms to be used on battle."

"Wait a second there!" Motoko exclaimed surprised. "You mean that you have magic talismans here, the ones that you use it with a little spirit energy infusion and throws at the enemy that is hit with a powerful spells based on the talisman?!" "Something like that." Benji answered. "But they aren't one use only, and the watch is needed to control it."

"You mean that you lost everything needed to cast those spells?!" Motoko exclaimed in horror. "I didn't lost them! I placed them on that drawer over there!" Benji exclaimed pointing to one of the drawers of his computer desk. "I am certain of that. I never take my watch out but Friday Keitaro burned me with hot tea and I could use it."

Motoko recalled that event; Keitaro tripped on a mecha tama that Kaolla made and his boiling hot tea cup nearly hit Ranko but Benji prevented that by slapping the cup and most of the tea away, some of hit him and burned the inner side of his forearm. "But how they aren't in the drawer? Kitsune already knows better than entering here, and Kaolla is already scared of coming here." Motoko commented. "If I knew I wouldn't be searching like this." Benji said in a slightly flat tone.

"But what is the worse that could it happen?" Motoko asked casually. Aware of what spells are on his selection, especially the mass area attack spells and the bombardment spells that he selected. "Well someone with Kitsune's level of energy would be able to easily turn into ruins a six block radius area." Benji answered seriously. "And just using the same spell three times, that using one of the medium grade spells, with a high grade one with one use a four blocks radius."

Motoko stared at Benji slack jawed. "That is the magical equivalent to a tactical nuke!" Motoko shouted in horror. "Why in name of heavens you walk with something that dangerous?!" "I have plenty of enemies! I need to have easy access to ways of killing the crap out of them!" Benji replied. "Well and I always wanted to have one of those massive beam rifles from Gundam shows." He muttered.

Motoko doesn't know if she gets horrified or disgusted at Benji's answer, in an odd way it made sense, if she ignores the last sentence. "So what kind of spells you have?" Motoko asked, she had a feeling that she would need to know that.

"Four kinds of shooting spells, six types of personal shields, three types of barriers, two types of fields, three types of bombardment spells, short range teleportation, flying, three types of sealing spells, four types of restrictions, two location spells and one invisibility spell." Benji answered.

Motoko stares at him, she wasn't an expert but she knew that it was enough magic to fill a spell book, it was more than enough to be part of a fully trained mage main arsenal. "So the bombardment spells does what the name suggest right?" Motoko asked nervously. "Yes and no." Benji answered. "It depends of the particular spell, two of them are massive energy beams able to destroy virtually anything, and the third is a massive rain of destruction."

"Why you carry that kind of thing around?!" Motoko asked grabbing Benji's collar and shaking him, she couldn't understand why he would have so much magic firepower after everything that happened. "I believe in being ready." Benji answered. "But this isn't the time to question my reasons, if you want to help, help me to search them." Motoko nodded and get on her fours and start to search for the deck and the watch on the middle of the things that Benji threw on the floor.

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Nagisa is on the library of her school, she pulls a fifteen by eight centimeters black metal case from her pocket and opens it, revealing twenty cards, each stored in a separate slot. Nagisa was fascinated with the cards, when she first found them she expended hours looking at them, studying each one of them, entranced by the drawings of each card.

Knowing that no one would be in the library at that time of the day, considering her classmates and schoolmates the library was always empty since they preferred to play outside, Nagisa calmly pulls one of the cards from the case, she couldn't understand what was written on the card, but the drawing of a young woman wearing red tights and a vest, with several orbs around her and with a complex circle drawing behind her, was her favorite of the lot, something on that particular card really attracted Nagisa.

Nagisa tensed when hearing the library door opening, she pockets the card and puts the case on her bookcase; Nagisa turns to face the door even before she finished placing her bookcase on her back.

Nagisa saw four of her classmates blocking the door, the four that bully her because they are the ones behind the others and since Nagisa is smarter than them and didn't had any friends in the school she was a easy target for them, and until then they never found where Nagisa hid so they could get her alone.

Nagisa knew that she was in trouble, she was smart and mature enough to tell when she is disliked, and she knew that she wasn't strong enough to defend herself from three boys and one girl, Nagisa was scared, this time there wasn't a teacher to prevent the four, and she knew that neither Benji or Ranko would be there to protect her this time.

Even scared Nagisa remembered Benji teaching her that she shouldn't show her fear to others, that only made the aggressors more excited and increase their efforts in scaring and hurting her more, but was hard for the six years old to keep a mask of calm when scared.

She could hear the taunts and the insults of the four as they walk at her direction with some distance between them to cut any escape routes from her. Nagisa knows that if she doesn't do anything she will be hurt, but she never learned how to fight, the little that she saw Benji, Ranko and Motoko training wasn't enough to help her at all.

Nagisa let out a yelp while she tries to block a stone from hitting her in the head launched from one of the boys. The silence that follows the sound of the stone falling on the floor disturbs Nagisa, she wasn't feeling any pain, and looking down she sees the stone half meter away from where she is standing.

The standstill last for few moments, with no one knowing what happened or what to do, and it is broken by the only girl of the group who throws at Nagisa a large book, a second boy throws another book at her. Nagisa stand her hands on both directions in an instinctive reaction.

To her surprise the book coming from her right hits some kind of invisible wall, and the book on her left is hit by something that turns the book in shredded paper, then a hole of the size of a golf ball appears on the wall behind the girl, just few centimeters from her head.

Nagisa feels a very odd sensation, a kind of formication, lightly sparky and hard to explain, but it also felt natural to her, she can feel that odd feeling moving on her skin, gathering on her left hand, at her fingertips. Nagisa closing her left hand fingers other her index and middle finger while focusing the feeling on the fingertip, she pulls back her arm and then with a little cry she makes a throwing gesture at the other girl direction.

To her shock Nagisa sees the girl being throw back by some invisible force and hitting the ground rather hard, the boys scream in fear not knowing what is going on, scared they grab the girl and run away from the library. Confused but happy Nagisa smiled looking at her left hand fingers, she doesn't know what just happened but she knew that she could get used to it.

Taking a deep breath Nagisa tries to mimic a hand and arm movement from Ranko, and makes a throwing gesture in the direction of a trashcan, she let out a disappointed cry when nothing happened, she can't understand why she couldn't do it now, when moments before she did it twice. Hearing the bell Nagisa runs to her class deciding to think about it later, totally forgetting about the group that tried to attack her and what they could do.

Far from there Benji felt something spiking, he knew that was mystical, it was an oddly familiar but unfamiliar energy spike, with Motoko and Ranko on school and he being at the pension with the excuse of being hurt, with a bad burn on his right hand Benji runs out of the pension to investigate the spike, he would have time to search for his watch and magic cards later.

However Benji wasn't the only one who felt the energy spike, while no one else on his pack felt it, Eri, Fuuka and Chie for being inside the garden, as he came to call the base, surrounded with magical protections, wards and others forms of magic to protect them and prevent any sort of attack against those inside it. Chiemi wasn't used to magic and to detect it, so she wouldn't feel anything even if a large spell was cast right behind her.

Benji had to admit that he missed that kind of freedom to run out of the pension by the surrounding woods, feeling the wind on his face, it was nice to forget that he had to teach to an army of teenager girls. It felt odd to realize how he missed all the small pleasures that he never noticed before or never really felt before his life was flooded with one responsibility after the other.

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Nagisa still isn't sure of what happened earlier that morning, the four bullies aren't in class, most likely too scared of her to be there, it was an odd feeling, both good and satisfactory, and bad and unpleasant; but she couldn't understand what caused the stone to burst, the book to shatter and then hitting the girl hard, she never learned anything like that, or anything that would allow her to make sense of that, for her mind, even more mature than most kids of her age was much easier to rule it as magic.

A smile traces Nagisa's lips at the idea that she have magical powers, but she wonders why so suddenly she was able to use it, when in the night before she couldn't do anything at all. Her best guess is that is somehow related to the fear that she was feeling and Benji's things, and in the end she was right.

The charms were made to react at instincts, before the user could assert the threat and react to it, triggered by Nagisa's fear, instincts and reactions the spells were activated in response, the strength nowhere close of the same spells cast by Benji, but more than enough to defend her from mundane threats.

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Benji looks around, he is in the area that he felt the energy spike, but it was gone and he couldn't detect it any longer, he couldn't see any signs of magical activity or damage in the area, but he was uneasy, he was too close to Nagisa's school for his liking, so he would remain there for a while, wait and see if happens again.

Much later Nagisa is eating her lunch, as usual a boxed lunch, and that day was made by Ranko, which meant lots of food, more than enough for her to be satisfied and still have some for a snack later. As usual Nagisa was eating on the classroom with her classmates, the school offered lunch, but half of the students still brought lunch from home, but today Nagisa had some of school lunch, to be more precise the bean sprout salad, she loved bean sprouts.

Nagisa was also waiting eagerly for the hour after the lunch, a free hour where the students could play indoors after the lunch, which would give her plenty of freedom to try doing magic again.

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Benji cursed his luck, when he took a five minutes restroom break from waiting for the energy spike it happens again. 'I so hate to remember of that Lobo comic right now.' Benji thought annoyed while trying to finish his needs as fast as possible, as he remembers a similar scene that he red in a comic book back in his high school days.

While Benji is held back by the unmerciful call of the nature Nagisa is scared, a woman that she never saw before is chasing her; she started just after Nagisa managed to repeat the magic from the morning. Running as fast as she can Nagisa tries to get as much distance between her and the unknown woman as she can, but the older woman's long legs and adult stride easily cover the distance that Nagisa's despaired run gets.

Tired of the chase the woman stops running and stands a hand on Nagisa's direction, and cast a spell, firing a large ball of energy against the fleeing girl. Looking back Nagisa freezes in fright seeing the large purple colored energy ball flying at her direction in what for her is slow motion, closing eyes Nagisa waits for her demise.

It takes few moments for her scared mind to compute that the pain isn't coming; she thought that she might be blocking everything, tentatively she opens her eyes and sees a tall shadowed figure in front of her with a massive stream of energy impacting against it and being divided leaving the area behind the figure safe and protected.

Benji can see the skin of his left hand burning away, he knows that it will hurt a lot later as the skin is progressive destroyed by the second spell cast by the unknown woman, but he is thankful that he struggled to learn a basic shield spell, but the lack of a field to block the intense heat of the spell is busting his hand, if it continues he might not have a hand.

The spell ends and Benji can see the damage on his hand as well on the area around him, the concrete melted where the energy hit the ground, at some distance trees are burning, windows shattered and cars are on fire. "Now that was some amazing response." Benji commented looking at the mage. "You changed a capture spell to a fire spell without even casting anything." 'And I can just cast the diffusion shield.' He added to himself dryly.

"But all that to get a little girl, I can't even start telling how that is a bad thing." Benji added teasingly, but keeping his eyes on the woman, she was tall, and is wearing black shoes, black trousers and a white sweater; her hair is long and light green, tied in a simple ponytail.

Nagisa couldn't even measure the happiness that she is feeling at that moment, Benji was there, he was going to protect her, and he also knew magic! "So there was unregistered mages on this area, then the rumor about concentration here are true." She said looking at Benji. "Dol…"

Before the woman continued whatever she was saying Benji felt that was a cast. Nagisa feels a massive impact and finds herself in an awkward position on Benji's arms, upside down, with Benji's left arm between her legs and his right on her shoulder, holding her as he moves faster than she ever thought possible.

Several spikes erupt from the ground where Benji and Nagisa where standing. Benji skids on the halt, far from where he was previously standing, a trail of burnt rubber shows the sudden stop, as well smaller trails where his feet hit the ground on the run. "Cinnabar edge!" Benji exclaimed with a throwing move at the woman's direction, several red blades shoot at her direction as fast as bullets.

She quickly casts a barrier that sends the attacks away harmlessly, Benji is already moving when she fires another spell against him, with Nagisa on his arms Benji couldn't do much more than just trying to score hits and dodging her attacks. Defeat a full fledged mage in long range magic combat, with his cards would be hard, without them he doesn't have much of a chance, but protecting Nagisa he can't move to short range combat.

However Benji noticed that the woman is breathless, casting that many powerful spells in such a short time is draining even for the best of the mages in the world, and she had cast a barrier in the area effectively locking everyone else out, Benji was able to stay thanks to his different world origin and his own mystic powers.

Benji puts Nagisa on the ground carefully; behind a car she would be better protected from a stray attack or from the woman trying to capture her. Benji throws at the woman a series of energy shurikens at the woman, as she raises the barrier to deflect them Benji covers the distance between them, his pocket knife open on his hand.

Made to deflect magic and other kinds of mystic energy attacks the barrier doesn't stop the simple and non-magical solid steel blade, Benji can feel the moment when the guard of the knife hits hard on the woman's stomach, stopping the advance, with a pleased grin Benji twists his wrist, hand and knife taking the blade diagonally and slashing as hard as he can to the right, easily slicing his way to her lower left side rib where the blade gets stuck for a moment.

Benji adds more force and cuts the resilient bone and the ones after it until the blade leaves through her left side, then Benji leaps away, all that before the blood sprayed out from her. With a gasp the woman holds her hurt side, and before Benji can strike again she teleports away.

Benji hides the knife as the barrier breaks and everything gets back to normal, even the destruction is now gone. 'Now that was easier that I was expecting to.' Benji thought while moving to Nagisa. 'I actually thought that mages would pose more of a threat. Either they are quite weak which wouldn't be odd considering the stereotype of mages being bookworms, or I got considerably stronger, which I don't think that happened since the last time.'

Nagisa is nervous, she had a feeling that Benji found what she did and is angry because of her taking his things without telling him. Benji looks down at Nagisa, she doesn't look hurt, maybe a little scared and nervous, which was understandable after everything, but other than that she looked fine, his biggest worry is how to explain everything, he has a gut feeling that he has plenty of things to explain not only to Nagisa.

"Sorry." Nagisa said meekly. "You don't have to…" Benji stops speaking while Nagisa stands her smalls hands at him and he sees his watch over her palms. Benji takes a deep breath. "You so have to apologize now little lady." Benji said taking his watch from her. "And you are also going to be…!" Benji grabs Nagisa and leaps away from where they were standing, just instants later the car explodes and Benji notices that they are inside another barrier.

Benji sees a energy beam moving to where he is about to land, but he can't do anything to change his course, all that he could do is try to cover Nagisa the best that he could. Nagisa closes her eyes in fear while curling herself as much as she can, pressing her small body against Benji's.

Benji sees the beam impacting on a semitransparent shield hovering in front of his left arm as he held it in front of him in an instinctive act of defense, the energy beam reacts as a water jet hitting a glass panel and is easily deflected away. 'Okay, that looks awfully familiar and I never knew that I could do anything similar to the light hank wings.' Benji thought while seeing the full attack being deflected. 'Please I can't be Juraian, I am not even original from an anime world, please I don't want to meet Tenchi Muyo's cast…'

Benji notices with great relief that the bracelet that Tsuruko gave him is glowing softly on his wrist, and is the most likely source of that shield. 'Thank you god, goddess, who or whatever was listening to me.' Benji hurriedly puts Nagisa on the ground and puts on his watch, with the watch he would he able to fight back.

"Locate and lock!" Benji exclaimed willing the activation of one of the charmed spells on his wristwatch. "Blade Rush!" Benji shouted as soon he locates the attacker, a magic circle appears in front of his hand and several blade shaped dark blue energy projectiles are fired at the attacker.

Benji hears a scream as a figure leaps out from the building that it was hiding her, Benji saw that was the same mage as before, and that around two percent of his attack hit her, most exactly on her right leg, where three blades are nailed on; everything else was blocked by the building or a protection spell.

"Protection!" Benji exclaimed while a second attack flies at his direction, as commanded a shield and a barrier are cast at the same time giving a stronger protection together than separated.

'Oh fuck! I forgot the activation for the bindings! This is why I hate magic!' Benji thought while keeping up the shield while the incoming attack intensifies. 'What was the command?! AH SCREW IT!!' Benji had to admit that he wasn't expecting to see seven metal spikes erupting from the ground around the mage, only her own set of shields protected her from being impaled, even not as effective as Benji wanted the impact on the woman was still a favorable thing, specially since she bolts away from the spot where she was, now seeing for a better location.

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Benji is breathing hard, after ten minutes of fighting the mage retreated, this time too hurt to come with a second sneak attack, Benji got hit pretty bad by some spells, he was tired and mentally drained, the worse is that he can't chase the mage, not that he is too tired to that, but chasing her would leave Nagisa unprotected, and his priority is to protect her.

Making sure that he is looking okay Benji moves away with Nagisa holding on his hand, he would have Fuuka examining Nagisa, she used two spells during the battle and was the source of the earlier spikes, so she have to be magical, she is after all related to Ranko, so she had on the blood the ability to be different from average people.

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Manami wasn't expecting that kind of resistance, how could she know that a just awakened mage girl would have such a fierce and strong knight protecting her? And he even had a powerful magic charm infused with powerful attack and defense spells, his attacks pierced her defenses with much more ease than her attacks did on his, she couldn't understand how.

But she escaped alive, she would heal, and then she would be back with more mages to get them, her people will learn about them. She takes a short break on a rooftop; taking deep breaths and healing the best that she can the massive cut on her. A small whistle gets her attention.

Turning back at the direction of the whistle she finds herself staring at the barrels of an over and under sawed off shotgun. "You aren't making us famous." Benji said casually. 'Wait his cloth…!' Benji fires the shotgun, both barrels at once blasting her head into nothing.

Manami's lifeless body falls limp on the rooftop. "You said that you were going to clean up the mess, and not make a bigger mess." A young woman wearing a reddish black suit said to Benji with a frown and her arms crossed over her chest. "That will be hard to clean."

"You was the one who said who wanted to capture a magic construct, there is one." Benji said pointing to Manami with the still fuming barrels of his shotgun. "That might be true, but I never saw a model like this." The woman replied crouching next to Manami. "Very realistic, at close examination really looks like a human. Where is the box?"

"In the chest, close of the heart." Benji answered. "I felt that when I cut her." "That why the head shot, since the head is mostly useless anyway, all the memories are stored in the box." She commented. "Well I can reverse engineer it with enough time." "Then go on." Benji replied casually while reloading the shotgun. "She is all yours now Tamura have fun."

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"Yes she is definitively magical." Fuuka said to Benji after scanning Nagisa with a PDA like device. "And a first class prime breed too I must add, I never saw such advanced magic system in my life before, and she is only six, I can only guess the power that she will have when she fully matures, but I am sure that she will be a very powerful mage."

Benji sighed lightly annoyed at his suspicions coming true, Nagisa was sleeping thanks to a minor magic, Chie cleared the house so Benji could take Nagisa there and not expose the kittens to her. "She is an emerald." Fuuka said seriously. "Even rarer than diamonds, I hate to say this but letting her untrained it would be a total waste, I don't know if it is pure chance or her family breed her to be this good, but letting her rough it would be dangerous for her and everyone around her, as well being a waste as I mentioned before."

Benji sighed again, he knew that Fuuka was right, Nagisa for sure had inherit talent and aptitude for not only magic but other types of mystical arts, but he wasn't sure if it was luck or as Fuuka said, careful breeding that culminated on Nagisa. "If she wants to learn then I will make sure that she learns." Benji replied after a while. "If she doesn't then she won't, even being a waste as you called."

Fuuka nodded not so pleased, but she could understand his reasons, and she also feared that by forcing Nagisa one day an angry and vengeful fully mature Nagisa would blast them to death with powerful spells.

"Anyway there are several methods that can be used to teach her." Fuuka said leaning against a machine. "The first and most common now days is sending the prospective student to a magic school, you might be surprised with the amount of schools that exist, some of them teach several different magic schools."

"As schools you mean types, as black magic, white magic, charm and things like that right?" Benji asked to the mage. "Yes, technically arcane magic as is know is divided in few schools, black, white, and dark, however dark are the magic that is considered evil; that is the one that most people think that is black magic." Fuuka answered. "Dark magic is evil, black is normally the brunt of the spells with attack, summoning and everything else related, white is more for defense, healing and related stuff."

"I figured that much." Benji commented. "Dark magic isn't normally taught, but there are people who are seduced by the power and from there you can picture the rest." Fuuka added; Benji nodded understanding, even more secret and underground schools of dark magic, with the users plotting world domination and stuff.

"The second method is to find a mage and have him teaching Nagisa." Fuuka said showing Benji two fingers. "That mage will train and teach Nagisa everything or almost everything that he or she knows, after a certain level Nagisa will be left to learn more on her own, but her magic style will strongly resemble her master's style, and in the school her magic style will be quite 'generic'."

"That is unimportant, what else?" Benji said crossing his arms. "The third method is for Nagisa learn by herself, self-taught magic can be really dangerous, without guidance, any slip can cost her life or worse, but it is also quite powerful since she can progress in a different rate than guided students, since she won't have teachers to hold her on mastery of basic spells and she might jump straight to powerful spells." Fuuka answered.

"Out of the question." Benji said seriously. "I know I am just listing." Fuuka replied with a smile. "A similar method is having charms and magic items, which is closer to your case." She said pointing to Benji. "After using the charms for some time you learn the magic even not learning the theory, it is a quite dangerous way to learn since you only know what the spell can do, not why it can do that and how it got there."

"And why that is dangerous?" Benji asked confused. "Mixing and altering spells will be very dangerous for you; you don't know where, what and how to alter the spell, which can lead to dangerous accidents." Fuuka answered. "It is like trying to customize a gun without knowing what to do; you have bigger chances of killing yourself than succeeding in changing it."

"You do have a point." Benji commented. "However if finding someone willing to teach, you will be able to learn the basics and theory easier since you already knows how to do it, the teacher will have to hammer out from you bad habits and wrong doings." Fuuka added. "I don't think that this method is the best for her."

Benji nodded agreeing. "And the last method that I know is finding a magic book." Fuuka said. "I don't mean simple as a book with magic spells written on it, I mean a book with spells on it that is magic, that kind of books can teach the owner the spells as if it was a teacher."

"And let me guess those books are rare and we don't have any." Benji said in a flat tone. Fuuka nodded confirming. "They are rare and powerful mage families and schools hold all the known ones." Fuuka answered. "So that leaves us with two available methods. Send Nagisa to a magic school or finding her a magic teacher."

"I take the second." Benji said with a grin. "That is why I have you." Fuuka groaned knowing that he would pick that option and say that. "Isn't like I know other people that can teach magic to Nagisa."

"You are aware that I am a combat mage specialized in instant silent cast of shooting, bombardment and personal and small area defensive spells?" Fuuka asked seriously. "I might be learning other stuff from the library but my personal expertise is magic combat."

"I am aware of that, as you said you will be the basic for Nagisa, later when she is older she might try learning other types, for now basic attack and defense are most important for her." Benji answered. "At least with those two she might be able to struggle long enough for me to find and get her out of trouble."

"I will get the short staff ready." Fuuka said with a sight. "Make it something pink, white and magic girl styled, she will like that." Benji commented with a grin. "And it will be easy to disguise it as a toy." "You want me to add charms on it too?" Fuuka asked dryly. "Sure, make it defensive magic, as well flight and a pair of shooting spells, maybe even one bombardment type." Benji answered casually.

"I was being sarcastic." Fuuka said annoyed. "And I am being serious." Benji replied casually. "Charms are always useful, why not making it something compact that changes into the staff by command? That way she can carry it around." Fuuka sighs while nodding and run out of the room before Benji comes up with something else.

Benji grinned while Fuuka run away from the room, he just loves rubbing her in the wrong way, it is always so fun to see her annoyed, angry and bothered. But putting aside the fun Benji needs to find a way to speak to Nagisa about magic, as well come with a good punishment for her.

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Nagisa was very nervous, she doesn't know where she is, she woke in that unfamiliar room, a quite dusty room she had to admit, but she knew that Benji took her there; she was scared that he would tell her that now she would live there alone.

Benji walks up the stairs and enters on the loft area. "So you finally woke." He said seeing Nagisa sited on the bed. "I guess that adding using spells to the stress of everything that happened today, you got really tired. You know that what you did wasn't only wrong, but dangerous, don't you?"

Nagisa nodded confirming. "While I am not angry at you taking my watch and the cards from my room and not telling me anything about it, I did things like that to my family when I was on your age, so it isn't all that bad, I am angry at you because you took it to school and used them, you have any idea of how lucky you got? It would be easy for you to get yourself hurt or hurting others." Benji said seriously, he really doesn't like of his role right now but it was part of the guardian's role after all, he couldn't get part of the package, it was all or nothing.

"You saw me using the spells from my watch, you saw what it can be done, what if a bad guy took it from you?" Benji continued. "What if one of your classmates stole them from you? And let's not forget that woman that attacked you, she was attracted by your energy when using magic."

"I am sorry." Nagisa asked holding her tears; she knows that she was wrong, she was sorry for doing it. "I won't do it again." "I know that you won't." Benji replied seriously, not showing signs of forgiveness, while he wanted to tell to Nagisa that was okay and she didn't had to cry, he knew that he had to make sure that she learned the lesson, so he would let her cry some more, when he feels that she won't forget the lesson he will tell her about learning magic.

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Author explanation corner part 2

Benji and Chie's conversation:

Construction and renovation of the area: The time table is a rough approximation of the time that it will take, unlike most Japanese houses and buildings the 'Garden' (unofficial name for the base) will get adapted Japanese-Brazilian plans.

In the Brazilian design on large indoors areas inside the house (kitchen, living room, dinning room, laundry room, bedrooms, 'occidental' doors (read not sliding ones), central water heater/boiler in the laundry room (in Brazil the laundry rooms are normally placed near the kitchen, separated by a wall, normally kept away from the 'living area' of the house as kitchen, bathroom and others, and the clothes are hang indoors too, which is good considering the 'rate' of panty stealing perverts in Japan).

In the Japanese the entry where people take their shoes on, the safety measures and standards that the construction should meet, and few more details. The 'living/housing' area of the garden will have two or three stores, maybe even an attic, giving plenty of room for everyone, as well some playing rooms, study, and other specific rooms.

Chie hired the best contractors that money could get in Japan, with experience and skill to make the garden a wonderful place, she hired contractors from Nerima. (Just kidding)

Cat girl color blindness discussion: Knowing that the two have problems with few colors Chie would try to determinate the specific colors, so she came with the idea of color by numbers, in that way she can determinate which color the cat girls can't see. However even knowing that, Benji can't do anything about it, the girls are after all fruit of illegal genetic engineering. It would require scientists to come with a working solution, and that would mean experiments with them.

Festival: Since the kittens are mostly kept indoors and don't have much contact with other people or events Chie wanted to let them have fun and go to the school festival, since they are after all a group of well behaving hardworking girls who study hard and obey the adults of the pack, they deserve some fun.

While agreeing with Chie Benji can't allow that to happen without thinking well about the situation, ten genetically engineered girls running wild in a festival might create serious problems.

Magical girl charming Nagisa: Okay I really wanted to write something like that since the idea of Nagisa taking Benji's charms and using them came to my mind. As I mentioned before I was thinking in more events with Nagisa, so this one popped on my mind.

Even Nagisa gets bored; you know that boringness that comes sometimes that you are bored of doing what you normally do for fun everyday? It isn't uncommon for small children to look on drawers around the house, and take things that they aren't supposed to take and play with them, happens everyone, it is a phase.

Because Nagisa was raised differently from average kids her performance in school is different, and so is her way of treating others, and given her private tutelage she is above her grade in knowledge, which causes other students to look down at her, there are students like that everywhere. So Nagisa's bullies became the trigger for her 'first' magic exposure.

The restroom incident popped when the scene wasn't developing as I wanted to, I recalled Lobo Infanticide and borrowed the scene where Lobo is urinating far from the army when it is attacked and he gets pissed because he is taking too long and missing the battle.

In the end the magic battle scene didn't came as I wanted to, it was going to be bigger, and more detailed, but that would make the chapter even longer, and writing magic battles isn't as easy as drawing them. So I shortened the battle, few things remained as it should, as the end with Benji killing Minami.

Fuuka's explanation: Just an overview about magic schools, based in what I gathered from all the sources mentioned in the previous chapters, there are several magic schools around the globe and those schools can teach several different types magic schools.

In Negima Negi's school appears to be painfully basic and generic, teaching only a basic array of spells as magic arrow (archer, Sagitta magica) and disarming spells as attack spells, that not counting whatever list of minor spells that aren't related to combat (the black ribbon sealing and the flower perfume used on the test of the 2-A).

While Mei is more of a 'mage' than Negi, mastering castless spells much before Negi (regardless of losing to Kotaro on the tournament), while it doesn't show what other spells she learned, and since both are talented that difference must come from the magic school, indicating that Mei's school teaches different things than Negi's.

From Fate Stay/Night I could see a different school, in that world magic is a much more serious thing that in Negima, in Fate the magic that we see are mostly in German, in Negima Latin while the systems are different I believe that the root is the same, so in this world they represent well two different schools of magic founded in different believes.

In Fate using wands, staves, any sort of similar item (ruler, hokey club, pencil, special ring) aren't required to cast spells, while in Negima is. To make peace with that, as well the 'universal' believe that mages use staves and similar things to cast magic, in this world (story) the use of a staff, wand or similar makes casting the spell easier as well provides a small boost based on focusing the spell on the wand.

The use of wands or staves is also common to beginners, since it is easier to focus on something tangible (and since Nagisa is Japanese, watched magical girl shows using a stave makes magic easier for her based on her 'cultural' influence, which I believe that is an important factor).

The teaching methods suggested as the most common, being taught in a school, being taught by a private tutor, or learning alone. As we all know each one of those methods have its upside and downside.

Well since the chapter is already long as it is, I will leave it like this, no Sailor Moon twist today. Sorry but no ideas came to my mind for it this chapter.


	16. Apathy and attachment

Hi this is Benji Himura

Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic. This is a crossover between Ranma 1/2 and Love Hina I don't own or any of the characters of those shows. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed Benji Himura.

This story begins in the Ranmaverse somewhere in the middle of the events of the chapter thirteen, actually between the release of Hinako and the events of the Gamble King events.

In the Love Hina timeline in the manga it stars after the chapter twenty six but before the chapter twenty seven.

This is a crossover so both stories casts or at least part of them will interact and there will be changes on both stories and on the plotline of Outcast Ranma. For anyone following the main story this scenario doesn't follow the same 'timeline' from the main story, it works on the line that timeline show on the story is the original one.

"Text" Talked sentences.

'Text' Thoughts.

-Text- Sounds effects.

(Text) Talked sentences in a foreign language as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

**Text**: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

_Text_: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

"_Text"_ Alteration in the voice, not in the tone but the voice itself.

Chapter sixteen: Apathy and attachment

Ranko uninterestedly looks at the items inside the store that Riko and Tomomi dragged her on, while happy that her friends were happy at her 'discharge' of the punishment Ranko didn't liked window shopping.

"This is so cute!" Tomomi squealed holding a cell phone strap with a small plushie chick on it. "What you think Ranko?" Ranko looks at the strap, it was cute but she doesn't like placing stuff on her phone, it gets tangled on her pocket or bag. "I am not into those." Ranko finally replied. "It is cute but it isn't me."

"Then what is you?" Riko asked teasingly. "Come on Ranko pick something, something in this shop has to catch your eye." If she was a regular girl Ranko might even agree with Riko's words, but Ranko is everything but regular.

"Hey doesn't your brother wear something like this?" Tomomi asked showing to Ranko a woven thread bracelet inside a transparent plastic package and held straight by a rectangular paper piece. Ranko tries to recall if Benji wears something like that. "His is white." Riko commented. "And he wears on the left wrist."

"Ah!" Ranko exclaimed hitting her left palm with her fist, now recalling of it and that Benji does wear a bracelet, but she isn't sure that is something like that. "What about it?" Ranko asked to Tomomi. "Well I thought that you would like to check them." Tomomi answered. "They do have plenty of them there, lots of variety."

Ranko looks at the case that Tomomi pointed too, as she said the case is filled with multicolored bracelets of every color of the specter. Ranko idly looks at it; it was more interesting that most of the other stuff, at least for her, and it was quite cheap.

After a couple hours Ranko is back to her room, at her desk is the shopping bag with the stuff that she bought with Tomomi and Riko. Now in her daily clothes Ranko sits on her chair facing the desk and takes a thick leather hardcover notebook from the bag, there was even a metal ring for a lock on the notebook, the sturdiness of the book as well the possibility to lock it was what attracted Ranko to it. With a brand new pen Ranko starts to write on the second page of the book.

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First things first, I am only doing this because Sayuri-sensei said that writing down my feelings might help me to clear them out since I won't confide to anyone most of what troubles me, as if I can just tell to anyone what troubles me. No one would understand, they would see me as a freak of nature, it happened before.

Second, I am myself, while I don't know what name I should bear. Now I am called Ranko Tachibana, I learned to like of this name, but it wasn't always like this, before I was named Ranko my name was Ranma Himura, before that Ranma Saotome. Confusing? Yes, it is a quite bad identity crisis.

And add to that the fact that I change sexes with the splash of water it makes things even worse. But things weren't always like that; I was born a male and lived as a boy for a little under fifteen years. I am a martial artist, now I am learned enough to not let my pride blind me admit that I am not the best of the world, but I am damn close of the top.

In a ten years long training journey the man that called himself my father, but rarely, almost never acted as one abused of me physically, beating the hell out of me, stealing my food, selling me out to feed himself, making me steal and much more calling it all training.

One day while we trained in China, we came to an area know as Jusenkyo, at his infinity stupidity my father ignored the warnings of the guide and made us train in the bamboo poles inside several pools of water, we didn't know that each one of those pools were and still are cursed.

Whoever falls on it, human or animal will be cursed to change into whatever drowned last on that pool, my father fell in a pool that turned him into a panda, and then he threw me in one that changed me into a girl. And that is how I can change sexes with the splash of water, warm water reverses the curse and changes me back to male, cold water triggers the curse and changes me to female.

After several months I was somehow used to this whole cursed thing, but I was always splashed with water when not wanting to, I was a fucking water magnet. Oddly enough recently I don't have as many water troubles as in the past, but this is now, and I am still sorting my past.

One day something changed, well landed in our lives, I say ours because affected more than just me. Benji Himura, before he landed on Nabiki I have never seen him or heard about him. After Cologne told us that he was related to a friend of hers Benji was taken to the Tendo dojo where Nabiki taught him Japanese.

It was amusing to see him mistaking greetings or things, but very quickly he learned Japanese, and soon he was affecting me directly, first he dared me into a challenge that just by accepting I lost, it is funny, at that loss I gained much, I became a better person, but sometimes I miss the old days that I was just a jock, acting first and sometimes not thinking later.

Before I noticed I respected him, he treated me with a certain degree of respect as he did with mostly everyone, he was trying to help me to improve as a person and also as a martial artist, I learned valuable lessons from him. He also introduced me to my mother, who my father claimed that was dead.

And for two years I was happy, at least much happier that I was in the past, my mother loved me and accepted my curse, I had someone who I looked up as a brother, I had friends, and Benji even forgave me for accidentally cursing him, Benji is now a werewolf.

I admit that Benji scared me when he first changed; he chased me and Konatsu for kilometers and only stopped because Cologne asked him to, but Benji was slightly different, differences that are now accentuated, sadly he isn't the only one with changes. I also changed a lot.

Half an year ago my mother betrayed me and Benji, she hunted us like animals and did the same with everyone else, they fled, but even today I have no idea of where they are, I have no way of contacting them and they don't know how to contact me.

Fleeing with Benji I leaned much, Benji planned our initial escape in details, he led me to safety, and now, six months later Benji killed my mother, Nabiki and Kasumi, as well many others that I don't know in order to give us peace. But this is for later.

As part of my disguise I am now always in my female form, changing only for few minutes when bathing, in the beginning Benji remained as a wolf for a long time too, but because of me now he can remain human. But I can't change to male, and I am not even sure if I want to.

I got too used in being Ranko Tachibana, I like this life, it is peaceful, I have friends that like me not because my father engaged me to them, but because they like me, or at least my current persona. I found new interests other than martial arts. I admit that I grew comfortable to this body.

Well there are other interesting things too. I am pretty damn sure that Benji knows that I experimented on this form, and I must say that is really intense, very different from male pleasure, with the benefit of not needing to take a break afterwards. I am getting used to this menstruation thing, it is so damn annoying.

I still remember how horrified I was when it first happened, luckily we were in a hotel and Benji was there to calm me down and explain to me what was happening. I was sick for learning that it meant that my body was physically ready to have children. Even now is a bit disturbing.

Benji became a big part of my life after everything happened; he was the only one that knew me from before, the only stone that I could cling on. He brought me to this pension, this insane place, now not as much insane, but that new turtle lady adds more craziness to the pension. Benji and I managed to make this place a bit more regular.

The tenants are nice, at least most of them, I don't get along all that well with Kitsune and I am not that close of Naru and Kaolla. But I am close of Shinobu and Motoko, oddly enough we hitted off quite well. I have a light friendship with Keitaro, something close of dorm mates friendship. And Sarah, I just don't like of that brat, putting on a sweet face to Naru and Seta, but showing her true self when hitting Keitaro.

After we settled in the pension with a fake story of being my brother/wolf Benji started to hunt my mother's organization in secret, I only found by accident and still he would leave me out of it. After few months he brought it down and with it he brought Nagisa to the pension.

Nagisa Himura, in the papers Nagisa Ayase, now Nagisa Seno, my cousin, before Benji came with her, I never knew that I had other family members, thought I no longer have other family members since Benji murdered them all. Nagisa is cute, lovely, gentle, kind, obedient, a bit meek, smart and bright. I couldn't help in loving her, even when knowing her just for a couple of months.

Oddly enough Nagisa isn't around as often as she used to, I guess that she convinced Benji in enrolling her in some private classes of something, she complained about being a bit bored of doing nothing. I wonder what she is doing and why she doesn't tell us about it.

After the summer Benji started to teach on my school 'forced' by the principal. He is doing a good job but he often looks very tired, I know that he does other stuff after the school hours, and he doesn't tell me what it is. I can only wonder what he does.

And what Benji did on that day that he left the school on the middle of the day and didn't returned until late that night. Benji hardly tells me anything at all. And it makes me so mad, I care about him. I don't know exactly as what but I know that I love him. That has to be the feeling, otherwise why I would get jealous of Benji coming home smelling as women's perfume from some unknown woman.

This is what bothers me, before Benji, before the hunt I was one hundred percent sure that I was straight. Wait, that is wrong, I think that before Akane ran away, when we were captured by those unknown people I realized how much I trust on Benji, maybe by then I started to develop feelings towards him.

I remember the sex dreams that I had with him and mother, and when I turned female and he was about to have sex with me I would wake up, but recently that changed and the dreams go all the way, I guess that experimenting did some difference. Maybe it isn't love as in lovers' love, maybe I just want to try and see how sex as a girl feels.

I know that I trust on Benji enough to know that he wouldn't hold that against me or be rough with me. But I don't think that all that I want is sex, sex based in curiosity in learning about this feminine body of mine. It feels more than that.

Who would guess, this feeling journal stuff does help, I feel a little better already, still confused but a bit better.

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Benji stretches tiredly on his chair in the teacher's lounge, he so hated correcting stuff, to make things worse the preparations for the festival were also taking much of his time. From Benji's chest the song Mask, the ending song of Sorcerer Hunters starts playing. Benji smiled knowing who was calling him; he pulls his phone from his jacket and answers it.

"It is official now." Tsuruko said from the other side of the line, Benji didn't need to know anything else, the police bought the story; their alibis were confirmed and found solid, only confirming what the crime scene told them; that Benji and Tsuruko weren't there.

"The burial is in one week." Tsuruko continued. "They released the body and I have sent it to cremation. I will start on the papers in two months." "Isn't a bit soon?" Benji asked standing up and moving to a window, he was thankful that the room was empty with most teachers dealing with their own business.

"Not when considering that I was thinking on this even before the accident happened." Tsuruko answered. "It is funny, the only reason that I didn't pursue that before is because my family didn't want the stain of a divorced woman in our family. It is so normal now days."

Benji nodded agreeing even thought she can't see it, Tsuruko was going to nullify her marriage with Hiraku. "So what about everything there?" Tsuruko asked. "The shield is still working?" "Yes, next time you let me know when you give me something that can be used as magic shield." Benji answered. "I was shocked in seeing the shield when it happened."

"I told you that it would protect and ward you from harmful influences." Tsuruko replied teasingly. "That also means magic attacks to certain degrees." Benji sighed in mock annoyance; Tsuruko knew that he was thankful for it. "And the school festival?" Tsuruko asked. "Is everything moving okay?"

"I think so." Benji answered. "Though I still don't know what to do about my kittens." "I am sure that you will think on something." Tsuruko answered casually. "I feel bad that I can't go and help you out with them, Motoko would recognize me on the spot. I am still not ready to tell her about us."

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Ranko puts her digital camera back on her pocket, she wasn't enjoying the field trip as much as her classmates and friends were, she was downright bored, 'How visiting Tokyo tower could possibly be fun?', was the question that filled her mind. Looking at Benji Ranko saw that he was as bored as she is, if not more, he is idly searching for a song on his MP3 player while keeping the students on his sight.

Ranko had noticed in the past that she is always looking at Benji or looking for him, she could tell by his gestures some of his intentions and moods, how running his hand on his hair would indicate that he was thinking on something, at least most of the time, some it was just to adjust some rebel strands.

The trip to Tokyo tower was as boring as she could possibly take, but recalling that Furinkan high didn't had field trips Ranko saved the comments, she had few good field trips in the past and she remembers that there is another field trip scheduled before the winter break, and she can only hope that, that trip will be more exciting than the current one.

She knew that Benji would come up with something interesting, and then Ranko recalled what she called Benji's nasty habit of not telling her anything. Ranko didn't liked to be left out of the picture and that is what he is been doing to her, and most likely did since the very beginning; he held back information, lots of it.

Sure she understands that she wasn't the sharpest knife of the set and that she couldn't compute the same amount of data as Benji could, but still she would like to have an idea of what is going on. Ranko knows that Benji has at least two secret plans going on, on that moment, plans that took huge chunks of his time and energy, and the worse is that Nagisa seems to know something about it, at least her gut is telling her that.

But Nagisa was so fiercely loyal to Benji and wanted to please him so much that Ranko is more than sure that not even with torture she would get the truth out of her, just because Benji told her to keep it secret. With a sigh Ranko leans against the rail, that mystery that first attracted her on Benji is now becoming a major annoyance.

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With the approaching school festival all the classrooms are busy with their projects. "So what we will be doing on the school festival?" Benji asked to his students, technically speaking it was his first school festival, he didn't count as festival the traditional holiday party that he went when in the fourth grade, it was nowhere like a Japanese school festival, so he was looking forward for something interesting.

Ranko in the other hand wasn't all that excited about it, sure it would be her first school festival too, in Furinkan there wasn't anything like that because the whole issues with Kuno and the other students, but specially Kuno. But the idea of working after hours to make a stand or a shop wasn't something that excited Ranko, deep down she was quite lazy about things that she didn't like.

Benji writes down on the blackboard the suggestions, at least the most sensible ones, ignoring the ones that involved him and less than four pieces of clothing on his body. "So café, horror house, cake shop, gift shop, tea house, restaurant and fortune telling booth." Benji said while reading on loud the suggestions. "And for the café, cake shop and restaurants we have themes, maid, anime, traditional Japanese style, anime Japanese style and school uniform."

"Asuka did you gave out the forms that I told you to last week?" Benji asked to the class representative. "Yes Tachibana-sensei." Asuka answered politely, she takes from her book bag a neat stack of papers. "Based on the information gathered from the skill forms we have people with enough skill to smoothly take care of any of the food stores."

"What about the gift shop?" Benji asked. "We have members who are good in handcraft but I believe that they won't be able to make enough merchandise for the shop, and purchasing items to re-sell them might not be as popular." Asuka answered seriously. "We can also make a horror house, a small one, but can be done."

"What about my fortune telling?!" One of the girls exclaimed. "Other than you no one else knows how to read fortunes." Asuka answered calmly. "So it won't be practical." "Maybe we can make a small fortune telling booth in the corner of the other store." Benji commented. "For now let it down." The girl nodded at Benji's words.

"Okay then." Benjis said looking at his class. "Now we have five possible stands, café and cake store can be merged together, since we can serve cakes in a café. So now we will be taking votes for the four remaining options; and if is a food store then we will take votes for the theme." The girls nodded and Benji takes the votes following the class roster order.

Five minutes later Benji counts the votes. "Well we have a tie between horror house and café." Benji said turning at his students. Benji notices the smile in the faces of some of them. "You gals are thinking in a horror themed café aren't you?" Benji asked in a flat tone. The chorused answer that he got was a loud yes.

"Asuka you heard them." Benji said to the representative. "Write it down." Asuka nodded and obeys. Ranko watches everything without much interest, she knows that she will be stuck cooking with Riko, Tomomi, few more girls of the cooking club in the class, and other more gifted girls in cooking.

In the end of the homeroom they decided in what they would need for the café; costumes, table dressings, portable stoves, refrigerators, ingredients, ovens, divisors to separate the kitchen from the shop, black curtains for the mood, candles, thick, tall and large candles to enhance the mood, and much more for decoration.

"Okay girls you have two days to come up with the menu." Benji says to them. "Friday is the day for the classes and clubs to give their plans for the student council for budged approval. And remember if you want to go to Finland as you all claimed to we will need to make a lot of money. So work hard." The chorused 'Hai!' was the unanimous answer.

Benji admitted that he was also looking forward for that trip, Finland had Salmiakki there. So even if he had to 'slip' money in they would make that trip. Most of the girls wanted to go because it was romantic, snowy and they could ski there in the winter.

As usual Ranko wasn't interested on it, there weren't martial arts in Finland, sure she knew that they had good food and other stuff there, but it wasn't enough to make her excited over the trip or working her ass out to build the money with her class. Ranko was quite surprised that Benji agreed with that trip in the first place, an international trip would require passports, and that means bureaucracy and more chances of being detected.

Benji leaves with Asuka to a meeting with the other teachers and representatives for a preliminary meeting about the student's events in the festival. "Ranko you interest on the festival is touching." Riko said to her friend. "An inspiration for all of us." "Just say that I am not giving a damn about it." Ranko replied in a flat tone. "I don't see why we should do this."

"Because it will prepare us for getting jobs, it teaches us administrative skills, responsibility, it is fun and we can make money." Tomomi said seriously. "And our field trip to Finland depends on this, one week of fun in the snow." "Yeah, lakes frozen so badly that you can use a truck to drive over them." Riko added. "Imagine us ice skating there."

"I don't like ice skating." Ranko said in a flat tone. "I don't know how to ski, and definitely I am not interested in boys from there." Riko sighed at Ranko's apathy at the trip.

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After the cooking club meeting Ranko is with Riko and Tomomi in a café, their excuse to taste trial things for their class menu, the real reason, to eat as much parfaits, cake and ice cream as they can. "Ranko why you are so uninterested in the festival?" Riko asked while scooping some ice cream and a cut strawberry from her parfait.

"It is a futile event." Ranko answered. "It is fun." Tomomi replied. "We can visit several different stands, eat festival food, get special drinks, I even heard that the manga club is organizing a costume dance along with the anime club." "And what is the point?" Ranko asked. "Sure we will open the gates to the public to visit too, but what good comes from this?"

"The classes raise money for trips, clubs for their activities, equipment and trips." Riko answered. "The extra money really helps out; we can't count only in the regular budget that we get from the council. If things go right with our store the cooking club will be able to visit that sweets factory in Kyoto, well it will be a one week long trip were we will visit not only sweet factories but other locations of great cultural value in Japanese cooking."

"And we get to eat tons of sweets, and the extra money will be used to purchase 'samples' of the sweets for 'appreciation' of the club members." Tomomi said with a smile. "Read buying even more sweets and stuffing out faces with it." Riko added with a grin.

The idea was temptating, Ranko didn't deny it, but still wasn't enough to excite her. "And if I am not wrong Tachibana-sensei is helping out the manga club, I heard that he helped with the development of a doujin that the manga club will sell in the festival." Tomomi commented.

"Yeah he is more involved on this than you are." Riko teased Ranko. Ranko hears everything halfheartedly, she is more concerned with other things, now with more time to think, more used to think about things before taking action, Ranko is worried about Benji, Ukyo and even Ryoga, Benji never tells her anything, and has been months since she last heard of Ukyo and Ryoga.

Not even the sugary treats in front of hear eases the worries of her mind, everything just keeps building and building on her. Now Ranko feels the lack of someone who she could speak with, tell that person everything and hopefully get back some advice.

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Later on that day Motoko is meditating in front of her Playstation, frustrated with her lack of advance in that stupid RPG game, she was stuck in the same area for three days and was starting to get annoyed. Promises of inflicting pain in the person who addicted her to those don't help.

Motoko is aware that she isn't a match for Benji; he was scarier than her even if she was more skilled and talented than him. Taking deep cleansing breathes Motoko tries to calm herself, sooth her spirit, and possibly finish that accursed assignment anytime soon.

The incoming school festival doesn't help much, she would have to help with her class's project a movie, and she got the lead role of it, then she also had to help with the kendo's club tea house. It annoyed her a little how things fell into a routine, she was happy about part of it, Keitaro wasn't walking on her or the others when bathing, changing or fell in embarrassing situations, and with the lack of pounding the ronin, the money that would be used to repair the pension from the damage is being used to renovate the pension and repair what was really needed.

But Motoko felt the lack of comfort, she got used to wolf Benji around and since he left there wasn't any news on him, not even Ranko knew anything about it, and Ranko didn't seem all that worried about it either, however Motoko detected that recently Ranko was very silence and thoughtful about something that she wasn't telling to anyone.

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Benji checks on the barricade on his door, it is nice and sturdy, so it is the one in the window; his room was nicely sealed from the outside world. With a smile Benji grabs a new backpack that he had purchased and leaves the room by a secret passage, one of the advantages of knowing about Love Hina is that Benji knew that there was several secret passages there; he took his time to learn them all.

The sun haven't even risen in the sky when Benji leaves the pension, absolutely no one will prevent him from reaching his goal, and he would kill to get there. In silence Benji runs away from the pension while everyone is sleeping soundly.

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After the breakfast Ranko is pounding on Benji's bedroom door as well shouting for him, even being a weekend, a Sunday above anything, she wouldn't let him rest; he would help with the café of their class wanting or not. Ranko knows that if she truly wanted she could put the door down, but she knows better than that.

Motoko sighed annoyed, Ranko was doing that for over one hour and there wasn't a sign of life inside the room, her trained senses told her Benji wasn't even in the pension, but Ranko wasn't listening to her. Even Nagisa looks at her cousin with some disgust. Kitsune is just enjoying the noise, for once she didn't have anything to do with it.

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Meanwhile Benji was back to his roots, under all the martial arts training, curses, responsibilities and personas Benji still was an anime fan, and it wouldn't be a bunch of high schools girls that would stand on the path of his passion, he after all deserved some time off to relax and enjoys the hobbies that he no longer can invest the same amount of time on.

Benji wouldn't deny that it felt good to cast away his responsibilities and problems, walking on the crowded isles Benji looks around for anything of his interest among the doujinshis exposed. It was after his arrival in Japan and Ranma's world that Benji first went to an anime and manga related event.

In Brazil the cities that hosted those kind of events were very far from his own and his hometown didn't hosted anything, other than a small group of anime fans having their own exhibition day of animes in a small theater in the college, but it wasn't an event just a exhibition of popular animes and a chance for them to chat and discuss about anime and related stuff, nothing compared to the massive events in Tokyo.

Benji isn't surprised when someone bumps on him, but he is surprised in who bumped on him, it was Ryoga, the eternal lost boy, and by the torn state of his clothes, a broken handcuff hanging on his right wrist and the lack of backpack on him it is clear that he is lost again.

Ryoga apologize for bumping on Benji, not recognizing the older man because the different hairstyle and clothes. Benji almost feels tempted to help Ryoga, but Ryoga isn't the most discreet of the persons. With a short talk and the help of one of the staff members of the event Benji shoves Ryoga in a taxi, fifty thousand yens are enough to make the driver tie Ryoga down in the passenger seat and take him all the way to Osaka, down to the okonomiaki shop that Ukyo opened there.

After that Benji smiles content Ukyo had managed to get a stable and peaceful life, and extracting the address from Ryoga would assure contact with them if needed, it wasn't a bad day after all, he got five hundred kilos worth of manga, learned where Ukyo was hiding with the others, and got all the music CDs from Sakura Taisen, and it wasn't even lunch time.

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On the meantime Ranko is having a bad day, she was on the middle of her period, not knowing that was one of the reasons that Benji ran away from the pension, she was angry because she was stuck carrying the brunt of the ingredients for the café and taking care of the heavy work.

Ranko's classmates learned quite soon that Ranko was a very, very, very strong girl and used that on their advantage, why have six girls to move a table when they could use Ranko to do that for them? With the festival just one week away they would use and abuse of everyone able to help.

Motoko sighs annoyed in the room marked as changing room. "We bit much more than what we could chew right?" Katia asked to Motoko from the door. "Yeah." Motoko replied, the kendo club decided to make a movie but they lost too much time trying to come up with the idea and haven't recorded anything yet.

Not even with Benji's help there was much advance on the movie, Motoko was cast as the main character, other than that there wasn't a consensus on who would play what role. Ultimately Benji left them to their own devices, as a teacher he should oversee the projects of the other classes and not help them, that was his excuse; his reason is that he was too tired to care.

End of the chapter sixteen:

Author explanation corner:

Ranko's diary: It is device to both recapitulate what happened until this chapter and a way to Ranko express what she really feels about everything, without worrying about being judged for her opinions. Since Ranko's apathy and current detachment are affecting her school performance Sayuri-sensei, the school nurse, suggested to Ranko to write down her feelings on a journal (since diary would be too feminine for the 'tomboyish girl'), in order to help her to get her feelings straight and dismiss her confusion.

Ranko's apathy: Because her complex situation, background and relationships, Ranko is detaching herself from the environment while she tries to sort out her feelings about her current lifestyle and problems. As mentioned Benji is a main solace for her so things will get troublesome between them later in the story, I have plenty of stuff to throw on them.

Mask: Felt like a good choice for Tsuruko's ring tone.

Field trips:

Tokyo tower: When I first started the Tokyo Tower field trip scene I was with an annoying idea bugging me so I wrote it down, in the end I dismissed it, it would take too long to make an entire Magic Knights of Rayearth insert on the fic. Yes originally there was going to be a crossover there but I dismissed it, at least for now.

Field trip to Finland: I picked a random location for the destination, originally was going to be Italy, but I decided in a closer place to Japan. I don't know the Japanese school system so the field trip might be against some regulation that I am no aware of. But the idea is there so the students feel up to gathering money for the trip.

Festival: Since I wanted to do this festival and 'promoted' it in early chapters I will go through with it, I had plenty of ideas for it, most of them involving costumes and the girls. Ranko isn't looking forward for it since it is too much work for something that she isn't interested on, Benji in the other hand is looking forward for it; we don't have that kind of thing here in Brazil.

And since the festival requires lots of work not everyone is looking forward for it, some clubs bit more than they could chew and are tangled with their problems, as the Kendo's club movie, they thought that would be easy to do it and left to the last minute, now with less than two weeks for the event they are despairing.

Motoko and her Playstation: As happened to everyone in the past Motoko is stuck in the game, but unlike most of people who have friends with the same interested or know how to use the internet to find a walkthrough, Motoko has no idea of how to proceed.

Benji and anime related event: He deserves a day for himself after everything; it isn't too much to ask. And it was a nice chance to throw a random Ranma character, in this case who best than Ryoga, who as usual got lost when trying to go to the bathroom.

………**Extra scenes………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………**

Keitaro screams in pain while Benji holds his head in an iron claw, the sound of bones cracking and muscles tensing under severe stress are clearly audible to everyone in the room. The girls watched in horror as Keitaro drops the black leather wallet that he was holding, just then Benji let go of the now unconscious Keitaro.

Benji quickly grabs his wallet, content that it is still closed; if it was open then he would be in serious trouble. "You know if you didn't want us to look at in your wallet you should have told us." Kitsune said in a disapproving tone. "That would only make you look." Benji said pocketing his wallet, of all the times for him to forget to store it in the hidden space when changing jackets.

Motoko, Ranko and Shinobu nodded agreeing at Benji's words, if Benji screamed at Keitaro from the door Kitsune would have opened Benji's wallet before Benji could react, instead Benji bolted from the door and held Keitaro in the iron claw before anything else happened and Keitaro's screams were enough to make everyone back away in fear.

Shinobu hurries to the kitchen to make an ice compress to Keitaro, he would need since there was five dark purple bruises on his head surrounded by a much larger lighter bruise of the shape of Benji's right hand. Benji leaves for the school, it was the Saturday before the festival and he has a meeting with the other teachers.

"Now I am curious to see what kind of secret he has in that wallet to make him do this to Keitaro." Kitsune said with a smirk on her lips. "It has to be something really juicy for him to scream 'Don't' like he did." As much she wanted to deny Motoko was also curious, what could be so embarrassing or private that he would faint Keitaro to hide it.

Ranko was also curious, it had to be something really good for Benji to react like that; normally Benji didn't care much about embarrassing things to the point of teasing Naru and Kitsune mercilessly when questioned about his sex life.

And Ranko knew that, that wallet was Benji's everyday wallet, the one that he used to store his documents, large money bills, credit cards, telephone cards, a rather large amount of paper cards and a small pen, and even some band-aids, it was a cheap leather wallet, she was there when he bought that one in a department store before the escape from Nerima.

But Ranko wonders what it could be, the wallet wasn't big enough to carry something embarrassing, it had to be something wallet-sized, it wouldn't be condoms, Ranko recalled well how Benji teased Keitaro and Naru when they found an empty condom box on the trash and asking him about it. Then it had to be something else that could be placed in a wallet.

"Maybe it is a picture." Naru commented. "My father used to carry pictures on his wallet." "Well it isn't unusual." Kitsune commented. "I mean it is very common, but what kind of pictures would make Benji act like that?" "Pictures with Ranko and Nagisa wouldn't cause this kind of reaction." Motoko said. "Maybe a girlfriend." Kitsune replied. "But he wouldn't act like this in that case either."

Ranko had to agree with that, in none of those cases Benji would have lashed as he did, Benji wouldn't be ashamed of his girlfriend. "Maybe there is a huge age gap between them." Naru said with her voice dripping with poison. "Like she is a fifteen years old girl."

"Please, as if Benji would fall for that." Ranko replied in a flat tone. "He doesn't bat a lash when the girls flaunt at him in school, and trust me they do things that not even Keitaro's magazines would publish of so hardcore." Motoko nodded agreeing with Ranko, Benji was made of steel, unfazed even at the most intense attacks from the girls of their school, and the attacks are current.

"Then why he would react like that?" Kitsune asked to Ranko. "It has to have some repercussion otherwise he wouldn't try to hide like that." "Maybe it is a boy…" Naru whispered in a venomous sultry tone. "It isn't!" Ranko exclaimed hitting Naru's head with her right hand palm and sending Naru to a collision path with the hardwood floor. "I know for sure that Benji is straight!" 'I wouldn't be that lucky.' Ranko added to herself.

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In his bike Benji sigh, he got lucky that no one saw the picture on his wallet; if they did they would find a nice picture of him and Tsuruko, with Tsuruko wearing a nice sundress and holding tightly on his left arm while smiling. That would raise lots of questions, especially since Tsuruko and Motoko share similarities, in skin and eye colors. Sure he would have to apologize later but Keitaro would understand, and as long the pictures remained hidden he would be fine.

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"And with this we are done with the preparations." Toshiko said for all the teachers and students in the meeting room. "Today everyone make sure of rest, for the sports meet and the festival." Benji stretches tiredly; he ended shouldering more than he should in order to help the kendo club and the manga club with their activities.

However even done with the tasks the teachers were required to stay in the school longer while the class representatives left for the weekend, now in the teacher's lounge a new meeting is taking place.

"As you all know this festival's purpose is for each class gather enough money to pay for their own field trips, as well the clubs to gather money for new equipment, entrance fees in competitions and other maintenance money outside the school founding." Toshiko said to the teachers there, every teacher there oversees at least one extracurricular club. "But there are some rather unreal goals in the board."

Benji gets ready, he knows that it meant for him. "As the 1-D class trip to Hawaii and the 2-B trip to Finland." Toshiko said seriously, Benji sighed relieved he wasn't the only one with an international trip idea. "Do you have any idea of the kind of dangers and possible problems that this could lead to? Or the amount of trouble for the school?"

"No idea." Benji answered in a flat tone, it was true after all, he has absolutely no idea, but it was Finland or the US, Benji decided that Finland was safer, and had Salmiakki. "Figured that much." Toshiko commented with a sigh. "I wasn't expecting you to know anyway, but you Nishino-sensei, you are a teacher for more than ten years."

"They weren't excited with the other locations." Nishino answered. "We had a poll and they decided on Hawaii." "And the fact that you are trying to get a class to agree with that in the last five years doesn't have anything to do with this?" Toshiko asked teasingly. "I just offered a suggestion, they liked it." Nishino answered with a smile.

"But none of the two will get the permission." Toshiko said to Benji and Nishino. "The school can't take the responsibility over the students while overseas, it isn't the same with a field trip anywhere in Japan, they are minors, they can't make that kind of trip without their parents or legal guardians."

"I thought that wasn't all that unusual for schools to make international trips when related to particular subjects." Benji commented from his desk, he recalled two movies that he watched back on his world where an entire classroom went to an international trip. "And if the classes make the money needed to pay for the tickets, housing and transport with the festival events isn't it okay? Isn't like the school will pay for it."

"Tachibana-sensei you seem to be forgetting about the need for passports." Toshiko replied. "The students most likely doesn't have one, in the tops two or three of them might have, but everyone else needs to make the passports, that means paying a fee when submitting the paperwork, a waiting time, and maybe even a visa, if you manage to get passports to everyone."

"What if we gather enough money for that too?" Benji asked, it was a bit irrational but he had to argue for the sakes of the students who worked hard to change their classrooms into a horror anime café. "In the unlikely case that it happens there is still the need for the parental consent; you really think that the parents will consent in that kind of trip?" Toshiko replied seriously.

"Why not, it isn't all that different from a trip to Okinawa or Kyoto, or any other location." Benji answered. "And how you plan to controlling forty girls in a foreign country?" Toshiko asked. "With outside help." Benji answered with a grin, Benji knew that if he went to that trip he would have to take Nagisa with him since Ranko would go too, and since Chie got free time since the construction is moving smoothly Benji thought in asking her to go too, sure he would have to take Sumire too but wasn't all that bad.

Before Toshiko could reply the lunch bell rings before she did so. "Okay we will make a pause for lunch now; we will continue this in forty five minutes." Toshiko said to the teachers. Benji sighed inwardly, he didn't had time to get a lunch box ready or buy one, he was too tired and woke later than the usual.

"Tachibana you want some take out?" Sakura asked to Benji. "We are ordering from the Aihara's." Benji was familiar with that restaurant, quite often he ate there after hours and the food was good, he even ordered take out there for the kittens every now and then.

Before Benji answered a tall man wearing a dark blue jumpsuit and a cap enters on the room. "I have a delivery for Tachibana." The man said. "Benji Tachibana." "That would be me." Benji said standing up, he wasn't expecting anything. The man hands to Benji a box and have Benji signing a recipe before leaving.

Benji reads the sender information and smiled, he pulls his knife and cuts the box open, over a beautifully worked black with gold details lacquered wood box there is an envelope. Benji opens it and reads. : Dear Benji, it came to my ears that you would be busy with school today; therefore I am sending you a little something to give you energy. Since you are part wolf and wolves are essentially carnivores there is plenty of beef there, enjoy the meal, it is still warm. Tsu-chan. :

Benji smiled and pockets the letter, and the letter was right the rice was nice and warm. "I so love that woman." Benji commented gleefully. "What? The wife sent you a love packed lunch box?" Akiko teased Benji. "Yup." Benji replied casually. "I wish that my wife was that considerate." Sasaki commented blowing a cloud of smoke from his cigarette. "Lately if I am lucky I get a box of cold leftovers for lunch, if that much."

"Maybe if you pampered her a bit more and more often you would get this kind of thing." Benji teased the older man, Benji hated when Sasaki smoked in the lounge, he couldn't feel any other scent other than the cigarette smoke. Benji closes the box and runs out of the room. 'No wonder why the delivery guy looked down.' Benji thought while running on the empty halls.

Benji sees the person that he was after by the entry, Benji jumps from the window and holds the person's arm. "Sorry for not noticing Tsuruko." Benji said in an apologetic tone. "But adding the outfit and the cigarette smoke there wasn't many ways for me to notice."

Benji could see the smile forming on the lips of the delivery guy. "Well I admit that I changed my voice too." Tsuruko replied. "Not that I am unhappy in seeing you here, but what are you doing here?" Benji asked to the disguised swordswoman, and wondering how her long hair hid folded under that cap.

"I left a shikigami home and came here for some comforting." Tsuruko purred pressing her body against his, and wrapping her arms around his neck. "I am after all a frail mourning widow." Benji chuckled and wraps his arms around her slim waist, the jumpsuit hide her slender figure too well. "You forgot beautiful." Benji replied.

"I didn't." Tsuruko said. "I knew that you would complete it." Benji kisses Tsuruko, it was a bit odd with the cap on, but they managed to find a good position after lifting the cap's visor. Tsuruko sighs in delight, she was longing for affection and closure, and keeping the façade of grieving widow was annoying and tiresome.

"How long you will be here?" Benji asked after breaking the kiss. "I am free for the weekend but you have the undokai coming right?" Tsuruko replied softly. "Yeah." Benji answered. "As the 2-B homeroom teacher I am supposed to be there." "Then what about after you are done today we go to somewhere quiet and stay there until you have to leave tomorrow?" Tsuruko asked. "Sounds perfect for me." Benji answered kissing her again.

Ten minutes later Tsuruko leaves taking the key of the 'nothing else to do' it was the best place for them to be alone. Benji returns to the lounge and moves to his lunch box, he was hungry and knew that he would need that energy in a couple hours.

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Benji looks at the main room of the house, surprised in finding it clean. "In heaven's name Benji have you ever cleaned this place?" Tsuruko asked coming down of the second floor, her jumpsuit dirty with specks of dust everywhere. "Well I never had the time." Benji answered pulling his handkerchief from his pocket and licking is lightly. "And your face is dirty." Benji said rubbing the dust away from her face with his handkerchief. Tsuruko closes her eyes and let him clean her, it made her feel warm and happy, even thought it was a gesture normally used by a parent on a young child, he did that on consideration of her and that was enough for her to feel special.

"Anyway I cleaned the brunt of the first and second floors." Tsuruko said with her chin still on Benji's grasp. "And changed the bed sheets, at least you had new and clean ones stored here. "I did?" Benji asked confused, he doesn't recall of ever purchasing sheets for the house.

"You do." Tsuruko replied. "And the bed area was considerably cleaner than everything else too. You have running water here don't you?" "That I do, as well gas and electricity." Benji answered. "Good." Tsuruko answered with a smile. "I want a bath and you are my substitute for a rubber duck."

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Ranko sighed, hugging her knees against her chest, sure it was a sports meet, but the level was so low, if Ranko went all out she would make sure that her class would win the most valuable class award and the away from cleaning the school after the festival, but there wasn't much of a challenge there to get her competitive juices flowing, it was so pathetically easy.

Benji was feeling nostalgic, he grew in a place that undokais weren't common, they were a yearly event housed by the Japanese community of his hometown and his family was invited for it, Benji had plenty of happy childhood memories about undokai, he almost felt bad that there wasn't adult events there, since he was a kid he wanted to try at least once to participate of the endurance beer bottle competition as his grandfather did every year.

Most of the students were wearing their gym clothes, some with tracksuits over them, the brunt of the teachers were wearing tracksuits, Benji was more casual with jeans pants, sneakers and a white t-shirt, it doesn't matter if it was an official school event, it was deeply wired on Benji's mind that undokais are casual events where people socialized and competed in a friendly event.

For the girls they were happy in seeing Benji like that, the shirt wasn't loose but wasn't tight either and allowed them to see Benji's figure and his toned arms. Half of the day had passed with the 2-B and the 3-D, Ranko and Motoko's classes, fighting for the first place in the ranking.

Nagisa was also having fun in the family related competitions for kids, as Ranko's guardian Benji had to take place as her parent in the ones that required an older relative, another reason that the 2-B was ranking high on the ranking even with Ranko's apathy. At the moment they are having lunch in a shade, Shinobu was also there, no one allowed Kaolla to go knowing that she would mess things up with some invention, Sarah was out because her violence, Keitaro and Naru remained in the pension to study with Otohime.

"Now this more like it." Benji commented looking at the large bento boxes, two of them were made by Shinobu, a third by Tsuruko, and two more by Chie who was also eating with Benji after dragging Chiemi to the blanket. Even Ranko made food for the day, four bentos worth just for her, and a fifth for everyone else.

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Misato glares at Benji, it was the last event of the day, well the last event already passed but because a tie between the two classes now a new event was added to break the tie, and the event would be between the homeroom teachers.

To make things fair the event wouldn't be something that required extensive knowledge of Japanese culture or required physical fitness. Misato was better than Benji in the knowledge and Benji was better than Misato in the physical fitness and coordination, Misato was after all a klutz.

The event was a book hunt, six books were hidden in the school, and the teacher who finds three of them and returns to the principal with them wins the most valuable class award and the free pass for the cleaning. Misato wanted to protest in being throw against Benji in the event, but Benji couldn't compete for both classes in the event as he did in the others, so Misato would have to compete for her class while Benji competes for his.

The three 3-D was very worried they know well that Misato isn't good at sports and has problems with details, and in the other hand Benji was as fit and good on tracking things as a bloodhound, but problems lies in the fact that the other classroom teachers hid the books, they could be virtually anywhere in the school grounds.

Ranko looks dispassionately at Benji in the start line, and the 2-B girls cheering for him, as well the girls of the 3-D cheering for Misato. Ranko can't understand why everyone was that passionate about that futile event, it was a waste of time and energy that could be better used to real training or more productive activities.

She can't understand why Benji seemed to have so much fun during the day, even Motoko who was usually reserved on her enjoyment seemed to be enjoying the activities, and even Motoko was cheering for Misato, not as loudly as the other girls but she was definitely cheering.

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Alone in her room Ranko remains silent and unmoving in the darkness of her bedroom, she could remember well the end of the book hunt, Benji would have won with slack if he wanted to, instead he slowed down his pace and even cheered on Misato when she fell on her face in the final race, Benji still won even though he was literally dragging a fainted Misato behind him.

After that the 2-B girls jumped on him with the most valuable class trophy, all of them screaming in happiness while Benji lifted the trophy high, even Nagisa joined the mess and got a seat on Benji's shoulders during the celebration, all the time Ranko watched from the sidelines not excited about the celebration at all.

Ranko knew that she was getting more and more detached from school and the involving events, but everything appeared to be losing the novelty, the excitement and the appeal that once had, it was almost as if she was watching her life in the passenger's seat, seeing it all by a blurred window.

Ranko didn't had the energy or interest to do anything, she knew that wasn't a good thing but she didn't even had energy to tell anyone what is happening, it was almost as if her life force was being drained away or blocked out by something.

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"Now that was a good bath." Benji commented stretching on the hallway. "After you won a free pass for cleaning tomorrow no wonder it felt good." Motoko teased Benji, she wasn't angry, she was expecting that the 2-B would win anyway since there had Ranko and Benji there, not even she could against the two of them.

"While that does feel good it isn't because of that." Benji replied casually. "The undokai recalled me of my childhood memories, sure it was way different from the ones that I participated when a kid but still was close enough. Still I wish that I could go to one like those someday, maybe not a school related one."

Motoko had to smile at his commented, while coming from a strict traditional family Motoko did went to undokais too, it was after all a traditional social gathering for confraternization between a community, she also had nice memories from them, especially getting prizes when competing, it was one of the few times that being the best wasn't important, but just participating and having fun.

"Latino doido." Benji muttered chuckling. "What?" Motoko asked curious, she doesn't know the words that he used. "It is something that happened in one of the last undokais that I participated on. It means Crazy Latino." Benji answered with a smile. "My mother's boyfriend participated with her in a couples' competition, it was something like a Cinderella event, the male had to find the shoes of the female in a bag filled with the shoes and take them to her so she could put them on and run to the finish line."

"And?" Motoko asked curious, Benji hardly spoke about his past, so she was eager for that tad bit of information. "He saw a Japanese descendent making his girlfriend wear his sneakers that were quite unique, well he did the same with my mother, in the race he tore the bag filled with the shoes from the hand of another man and then started to look for his sneakers, then he ran to my mother, she put then on and they ran to the finish line, they ended in the first place." Benji told to Motoko the event. "Anyway few events later he went to participate and one of the staff members said 'No, Latino doido no.'."

Motoko chuckled with Benji, it did sounded funny, and they did had a event like that on the undokai but it was between students and Motoko sited out on that event. "Sadly a couple of years after that the undokai kind of died there." Benji said with a sigh. "The Japanese community appeared to decide that was too troublesome to organize the event, rent the location and everything else. Few years they did it but didn't invited my family, eventually the event died out, not that I blain then, when I was a kid the Japanese community was rather tight, mostly the families were composed of Japanese descendent people, with Japanese traits, my family is more globalized than the others, I had a hard time when a kid there, I wasn't Japanese enough for them."

Motoko looks at Benji sympathetically. "You look Japanese enough for me." Motoko commented, but she can't deny that there were other racial traits that indicated that Benji wasn't fully Japanese, but quite mixed. "Thank you." Benji replied. "But it is okay, I know that I can't pass by a full Japanese man, anyway, the day was good, and we have to rest for tomorrow."

Motoko nodded agreeing, tomorrow the festival would take place and it would be a busy day with even more activities. "Once again thank you for helping out with the movie." Motoko said while bowing to Benji. "We wouldn't have made it if wasn't for you." "You are welcome, besides it also helped the manga club." Benji replied.

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Back in his room Benji checks on his phone, he wasn't expecting messages or anything but it was good to check given his luck with sudden incidents, with no new messages of missed calls Benji places his cell phone back in the nightstand to charge the battery. After locking the window and adjusting the air conditioning Benji turns off the light.

He was completely off guard when someone threw him against a wall; Benji could barely hear the sound of his door being locked before his wrists were hold above his head by a strong, but small hand. Benji remained in silence, but he was nervous, the person holding him against the wall is smaller than he is, but by far stronger, he can't get free even thought he can move his body.

A familiar voice whispered to him. "I almost forgot again that even bigger than I am you are still weaker." It is Ranko's voice, he hears it everyday so he was sure of that, but the hair color is wrong, well it was back to the original red color, not as long as he because used to see, but by far longer than the original pigtail, somewhere between the current and the past length.

"You look strong." She said rubbing her right hand on his chest over his sleeping shirt. "With the proper doctrine of training you could become stronger than me, you have a good build for that, but that isn't good, if you are stronger than I am, then I wouldn't be able to subdue you."

Benji could guess what will follow, Ranko wasn't exactly subtle, she needed him weaker than her so she could subdue him, and that meant that she would force him, rape him. "What a nice sound." Ranko purred rubbing her forehead on his neck, feeling the vibrations of the low, bass and throaty instinctive vocalizations that indicate Benji's anger and displeasure, rich and complex sounds impossible for a human throat, but common for a wolf's, a unique trait of Benji's cursed human form. "I like it; it makes my insides all tingly."

Benji uses his entire body trying to push himself away from the wall and Ranko away from him. Ranko responds by pulling and then shoving Benji back on the wall, hard enough to make the wood creak under the stress, and enough to disorientate Benji. "You still don't get it?" Ranko asked half seriously half playfully. "You can't fight me, not like this, not already pinned down, you need space to plan and run, to trick me, and right now I have only one goal and you can't make me lose sight of it."

Punctuating her words Ranko kisses Benji, she had to tiptoe to reach his lips, also force him down more than a little, but she didn't care about that. Benji doesn't respond to the forceful kiss, but he knows better than refusing just now, something was wrong and he needed to wait until the opportunity shows, and not act recklessly.

"Your body seems to be responding even though you don't seem to be very cooperative." Ranko commented playfully while rubbing Benji's crotch. "Being a male for most of my life give me first hand experience of what feels good for a man." "Actually you aren't doing all that well." Benji commented. "My first girlfriend who was totally inexperienced does better than you, needless to say that you aren't even close of my current lovers."

Benji does his best to keep his face straight while Ranko squeezes hard on his crotch, and he does make a note to avoiding repeating that kind of barb when the target have reach of his family jewels. "Fine, I might be unskilled, but still is enough to get a reaction from you." Ranko said with a hint of anger on her voice. "You should be looking forward, isn't every day that you get a high school girl as sexy as me wanting to fuck your brains out."

Benji saves the barb, he knows that Ranko can easily remove parts of him that he likes to keep connected and close to. "So why you aren't interested?" Ranko asked, Benji could easily detect sadness and a little curiosity on her voice. "Because you don't know what you want." Benji answered. "You are starving for affection, closeness and someone responsible so badly that you are imprinting me without caring for anything."

"Imprinting?" Ranko asked confused, Benji smiled inwardly, now that was like Ranko, down to the very lightly cocking of her head and confused look.

"Psychological imprinting." Benji answered. "It is just like a new born bird imprints the first thing that it sees as its mother. You are doing the same thing with me; you are imprinting me as lover or something, and because your past and unreliable parental and family figures, past traumas and teachings are echoing in your mind, creating a never ending cycle of confusion and fear."

"I fear nothing!" Ranko shouted slamming Benji on the wall again. "Really?" Benji replied holding back a snicker. "Your oldest fear is cats, but your biggest fear is being left alone and abandoned by me." It hurt to do that to Ranko, but Benji did what he had to do and he would continue to press the wound and bury his fingers on it as much as needed. "That one day you won't find me there."

"You wouldn't dare!" Ranko hissed dangerously. "Please, if I felt like it I would walk away from everything including you without a second thought." Benji said in a teasingly tone. "You don't get it Ranko, I don't need you, it is you who need me. You know that and you fear that one day I will grow tired of everything and just walk away, after all why should I bear all the responsibility of you and everything else? We aren't even related."

Benji could see the damage that he just inflicted, more painful and intense than any wound that could ever be inflicted on her, ever, and with that Ranko's grasp on Benji's wrists loosened. Benji tears his right hand away from her grip and takes his pocket knife from the desk next to them. With a light push the blade jumps open and before Ranko could react, the blade is hilt deep on Ranko's left side, easily slipping between her ribs.

Ranko gasped as blood jets up her throat and fills her mouth, her left side throbbing as her pierced heart pumps itself to destruction, finally the pain hits her and she screams. Ranko's body is tense as a bow, her back arched as she tries putting pressure on her left side, she can't hear anything other than the sound of her blood thundering on her ears.

Ranko runs out of air and tries to breathe in, get as much air as she can, thrashing in despair for an unknown amount of time Ranko finally realizes that she isn't dying, her breathing is composed of painful sobs and her heart is still racing. Feeling desperately her slick left side Ranko doesn't find any knife or cut.

It takes long moments for Ranko even realize that she isn't even standing, but lying down, that she isn't on Benji's room but on her own room. Still terrified near death Ranko's mind slowly processes the information, she is tangled on the torn remains of her blanket, her pajamas are torn and ripped in several places, her body covered by a slick sheen of sticky sweat, and her bed was uncomfortably wet.

"A nightmare?" Ranko asked to herself, while sitting up in the bed. A sniff of ammoniac stings her nose. "Please whatever is up there let this being less bad and tell me that I didn't wet my bed." Ranko begged to the roof of her room, but a quick touch between her legs confirms her fears.

Now more embarrassed than scared Ranko sighed, she gathers her bed sheets and wraps it all in a ball, turning on her study lamp Ranko exams herself in the mirror, and she didn't liked of what she saw, her hair was a mess, her shorts stained, her shirt torn, her face stained with tears. Ranko throws the ruined shirt in the trashcan, she takes out her shorts and panties and put it together with her sheets; then she grabs a towel and a clean set of closet.

Wrapping herself on the towel Ranko takes the clean clothes and the soiled ones and marches to the laundry room, once there Ranko shoves all the dirty clothes in the washing machine and turns it on before leaving to the bath; and once showering Ranko starts to think on her nightmare.

'It felt too real.' Ranko thought in silence, washing herself as trying to get rid of all the feelings that the nightmare stirred, it was more than fear and confusion, Ranko could feel that she was also excited, the signals were still there, forcing Benji so she could get what she wanted felt good. "It was so disturbing." She whispered on loud.

The worse part of everything was that Ranko knew that everything that Benji said to her on the dream was true, sure she doesn't exactly know where she heard half of the psychological crap that he told her but she knew that he was dead on right.

The thought of Benji just disappearing some day and leaving her alone terrified her enough to wonder if would be okay chain herself on him, and that she was confused about everything, but how she couldn't, she was originally a boy and now she pretty damn used in being a girl, actually liking of being a girl, it can't get much more confusing than that… Ranko admitted that it could, she has trust and responsibility issues.

Ranko was afraid of trusting in people at the same time that she easily trust on others, she was too forgiving and even being betrayed countless times in the past she still gave more chances to the ones who betrayed her, and Ranko hated having to decide on things, but at the same time complained of having responsibilities and claimed to be able to take care of her own life, she was lazy and quickly uninterested of anything that wasn't martial arts.

She was also divided, part of her wanted to come clean, tell to everyone that she knows about her curse, but another part of her was afraid of the consequences of the truth, she doesn't know how her friends would react to it, if was truly wise to tell it to everyone when there could still be people hunting her and Benji, she couldn't be that selfish.

She also couldn't hog Benji all for herself, even wanting to, Ranko knew that it was wrong, Motoko once said to her that Benji took care of more kids that were affected by Nodoka's organization, when Chiemi's mother showed with Sumire, added to how Sumire reacted to Benji and acted towards him Ranko knew for sure that she was one of them.

Ranko couldn't bring herself to hate the child or even Benji, Sumire was so cute and innocent, she wasn't guilty of anything, it didn't felt right to complain about Benji not expending time with her, how she could demand more attention when Benji had to take care of a baby and who knows how many more kids.

Even knowing all that Ranko was still angry, Benji didn't tell her anything, haven't even asked her to help with that, if they were orphans caused by her mother than Ranko has a honor debt to repay to them. Ranko sighed frustrated, she was falling back to her usual way of thinking, what good she would do to them, she doesn't like small kids, or at least she thinks so, she doesn't have anything good to teach them, and god knows that she isn't exactly a good role model for them.

Ending her shower Ranko dries herself and puts on her clean clothes, Ranko moves back to the wing of her room, but she stops by the closed door, she doesn't want to sleep alone after that nightmare, she has two choices, the first was going to Benji's room, the door was always unlocked during the night since Nagisa moved to his bed eighty percent of the nights, the second was going to Nagisa's room, the child wouldn't mind the company either, but Ranko knew that what she wanted Nagisa couldn't give to her.

With a sigh Ranko slides open Benji's bedroom door, she is a bit surprised that he is alone in the bed. 'I guess that Nagisa was more tired than I thought.' Ranko mused recalling that Benji carried Nagisa to the pension and the girl was dozing off on the way.

Ranko quietly walks towards Benji's bed, she is quite surprised in seeing his head turning to her and his eyes open slightly, she had underestimated his enhanced senses and wolf's wariness. "What?" Benji asked sleepily. "Unless there was a sudden and massive growing spurt on Nagisa or I slept for years, what are you doing here Ranko?"

Ranko chuckled lightly at his comment. "You would be mad if I said that I had a nightmare and don't want to sleep alone?" Ranko replied meekly. Benji moved to the side and opened his blanket; he was too tired to really care anyway. Ranko let out a squeal of delight and rushes inside the warm covers.

With a content sigh Ranko snuggles next to Benji, the feelings that she haven't felt for months come back to her, the warm comfort and security that she felt when sleeping with him, the bed was filled with his scent and warmth.

………**Sailor Moon twist part 7………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………**

"Why we are here?" Haruka asked to the inners, that meeting interrupted her in the middle of her viewing of a motorcycle show in TV, she was really looking forward for it, and doesn't matter that she was taping the entire thing. "I got a flyer from one of my mothers' patients on the other day." Ami said to Haruka. "It is a school festival, I thought that it would be good for us to go there and have a good time. We have been patrolling Juuban like crazy in the past months."

"Well you do have a point about us patrolling." Makoto commented. "Even my calluses have calluses of walking so much." "Tell me about it, my feet are killing me." Minako complained. "I guess that a day off wouldn't hurt all that much." Setsuna commented. "We are working as hard as we can, taking easy is also important, especially when we have no idea of when an enemy attack will come."

"And based in our previous experience with different enemies of the past an event like this, of this size would be a potential target for them." Ami added. "You are just trying to justify for us going there to have fun." Rei teased the blue haired senshi. "But I agree with her, let's go there and have fun there while patrolling that school."

"I guess that I can't complain about it." Haruka muttered, inwardly she was also interested on the festival, it had been a long time since her last one, a good bit of high school fun would be a welcomed change of pace in her life. "Since everyone is agreeing we can go there Monday, we meet in the front gate." Michiru said to the others. "I will make copies of the flyer; it has the list of events and attractions on it, as well the address of the school." Ami announced.


End file.
